These allowed Australian songbirds to head out into the wider world, where they did exceptionally well. In fact, researchers think all the world’s 5,000 or songbird species came from Australia.

The 216 Australian birds now at risk of extinction comprise: 23 critically endangered; 74 endangered; 87 vulnerable; 32 near-threatened. This is up from 134 birds in 1990 and 195 a decade ago.