Distribution

Throughout New Guinea from sea level up to 1,5000 m (4,900 ft), or more rarely, up to 1,800 m (5,900 ft.) (Beehler, Pratt and Zimmerman 1986), and sometimes even higher; also occurs on the island of Yapen (Japen) and on Salawati in the western Papuan Islands.

Plumage

There is a great variation in plumage, due partly to the presence of more than one color phase and to the variation in individuals.  Without reference to skins collected throughout the range and accurately labeled, or observation of wild birds, it is impossible to resolve the question of how much this is influenced by the locality of their origin.

Most dusky lories are of the orange phase, that is, there are two bands of orange, one just below the throat and the other on the upper breast.  Most of the abdomen, except the sides, is also orange, and this color varies from intense fiery orange to a more muted color.  the forepart of the crown is golden orange.  In the yellow phase these areas are replaced by yellow.  However, there is an intermediate in which the orange is duller and interspersed with yellow feathers or, in other individuals, the upper band could be mainly orange and the lower band mainly yellow, or vice versa.  Whether this is the result of pairing two birds of different color phases is unknown. 

The feathers from nape to mantle and those between the two bands of color, are black and/or brown margined with orange or yellow, according to the phase, brighter on the nape and duller on the breast, where they may be buff or silvery buff.  The abdomen, even in some adult birds, may be marked with black or blackish brown.  Upper parts are very dark brown, browner on the wing coverts; underwing coverts are orange in the orange phase and yellow in the yellow phase.  The flight feathers are broadly marked with orange or yellow.  The tail is blue-bronze and orange above; the underside is pale bronze and orange.  Under tail coverts are dark blue.  The beak and the prominent area of bare skin surrounding the lower mandible are orange; the iris is also orange and the feet are black.

Theoretical color expectations: two orange phase birds will produce only orange phase young, but two yellow phase birds can produce yellow and orange young.

Aviculture

The dusky lory imported into the U.K. by Mrs. S. Belford in 1972 was an avicultural rarity.  I was fortunate to look after it for some while and I was entranced by its tameness and gentleness.  It was the first of its species seen in Europe for probably nearly 40 years - and the forerunner of thousands; later that year commercial export from Irian Jaya commenced.  In 1974, the first breeding successes were recorded and, soon after, this species was securely established in captivity.  this occurred perhaps with greater speed than in any other lory species following its first influx from the wild.  It has been bred in most countries where aviculture is practiced.  In Japan, for example, the first success was reported in 1978 by Dr. Masahide Koji Mahara.  He obtained a pair from a bird shop in 1976 and kept them in an aviary 2.1 m (7 ft) long, 95 cm (3 ft) wide and 2.2 m (7 ft) high.  They were fed on sunflower seed, sponge cake, biscuit and fruit (banana, apple, grapes and orange).  During the breeding season they were offered bread spread with raw egg and honey.  The pair nested in a box 23 cm (9 in) square and 30 cm (12 in) high.  A chick was heard on June 24; nest inspection on July 9 revealed one chick and one infertile egg.  the young one left the nest on September 2, after a minimum of 70 days.

At the time of writing, I have kept this species for 20 years - and reared it almost every year since 1975.  I would rate it with the green-naped lorikeet as being one of the easiest lories to breed.  However, it is not as prolific, because it is a seasonal breeder.  In my experience, in the UK, and in the Canary Islands, eggs are usually laid in April; if the clutch is successful and the young parent-reared, there will not be another clutch.  If the nest fails or the chicks are removed, a second clutch may be laid, but no later than the end of August or the beginning of September - and that rarely.  It has been my practice in recent years to leave the young with their parents for months after they fledge. (At the time of writing a seven-month-old youngster is still with its parents.)  In colder climates, such as the U.K., even though this species is not a winter breeder, one needs to be aware of the dangers of night-exposure to newly fledged young.  In 19880, I was abroad when the chicks fledged on October 10.  One was picked up dead the next morning, undoubtedly because it had not roosted in the nestbox.  Thereafter, I found a simple solution - to take the young indoors at night in cold weather.

The adults were very hardy birds, impervious to the worst winter weather.  They could sometimes be seen jumping on the snow-covered floor of their aviary.  Evidently they did not feel the cold, or they would not have exposed their feet to the snow, thereby lowering their body temperature.  On many winter days it would be necessary to renew the nectar three or four times, to prevent it from freezing (Low 1985).

Rearing food for my pair consisted of nectar to which was added wheat germ cereal (and, on occasions, Horlicks), and also milk in a separate dish.  At first I gave bread and milk but the bread was ignored.  Ripe pear and millet spray were given daily.  the latter had never been eaten until young hatched and I saw them trying to get at the millet sprays in the adjoining aviary (Low 1976).  The first three clutches laid by this pair resulted in a chick hatching each time, which died at only 2 days.  It must have been coincidence that chicks were always reared after spray millet became part of the rearing diet, because other pairs in my care since then have not had this food; they have reared their young on the normal nectar, plus extra fruit, especially banana, also apple and pear.  However, the weights of these young are lower than those reared by Paul Tiskens' pair.  His lories are fed on his own liquid food in the morning and on fruit with a dry food in the evening.

Some dusky lories are aggressive when breeding.  One pair in my care will not leave the nest when the chicks are young, so for the first 20 days it is difficult to view them.  Others threaten, without carrying out any physical violence.  Some hand-reared young can also be aggressive.  Val Wittcke (pers. comm.1994) described the behavior of two chicks she hand-reared when their mother became paralyzed: "I made such a fuss of them because they were so cute when I brought them in.  I used to spend hours wasting time with them.  They were fine at first and then they got a bit nippy.  Now, they jump on me as soon as I go into their aviary, snuggle into my neck and then they bite as hard as they can.  Not only my neck, though: they aim for my hands, face, any flesh they can get hold of."

Hiller (1987) describes how apparent aggression is expressed in terms of natural behavior.  "In both sexes I have observed a 'ploughing' motion, in which the bird walks on a smooth surface, pushing the tips of both (?) mandibles along in front of it.  It will then stop, and rub the beak in a forward-back movement with increasing frequency.  Alternatively, a rapid 'tapping' with the beak may occur.  In context, I believe this action implies aggression.  If I imitate the beak-stroking or tapping movement with a finger, I can usually induce them to do the same, which shows it is a highly communicative gesture.  When the pair is excited, as in during play, they will 'hop,' again along a flat surface, achieving a great deal of height."

Despite the aggressive nature of some individuals, the dusky lory often makes a delightful pet.  It is one of the two or three lory species most likely to be chosen as a companion bird.

Literature