Sulphur-crested cockatoo
The Sulphur-crested cockatoo (Cacatua galerita ) is a relatively large cockatoo found in wooded habitats in Australia, New Guinea, and some of the islands of Indonesia. They can be locally very numerous, leading to them sometimes being considered pests. A highly intelligent bird, they are well known in aviculture, although they can be demanding pets.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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GranivoreSeed predation, often referred to as granivory, is a type of plant-animal interaction in which granivores (seed predators) feed on the seeds of pla...
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FrugivoreA frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts, and seeds. Approx...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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ArborealArboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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ZoochoryZoochory animals are those that can disperse plant seeds in several ways. Seeds can be transported on the outside of vertebrate animals (mostly mam...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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MonogamyMonogamy is a form of relationship in which both the male and the female has only one partner. This pair may cohabitate in an area or territory for...
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FlockingFlocking birds are those that tend to gather to forage or travel collectively. Avian flocks are typically associated with migration. Flocking also ...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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Snow WhiteThe Sulfur-crested cockatoo is a white parrot with a distinctive yellow crest on top of its head which it can raise or leave folded down. Its beak is dark grey-black. The underside of the wings and tail is a paler yellow. Females and males look the same but females have red-tinted brown eyes, while the eyes of males are darker brown.
The Sulfur-crested cockatoo is found in large numbers in the east and north of Australia and most of New Guinea with nearby smaller islands. It also lives in Western Australia, Singapore, Palau, Taiwan, Puerto Rico, and New Zealand as an introduced species. They live in areas with trees, such as tropical and subtropical rainforests. The vast savannas in northern Australia are also their home. They can be found in suburban areas, particularly in parks and gardens.
These cockatoos are diurnal gregarious birds, and flocks from a dozen up to several hundred will form. At sunrise they fly from the roosting grounds to feeding grounds, flying back to roost at dusk. They feed in groups, while one individual watches for danger from a nearby perch. They shelter in trees during the hottest times of the day. Their flight pattern is typically a series of quick, shallow wing beats with gliding in between. They fly to and from feeding grounds at a considerable height, to swoop down in wide, sweeping circles. They are noisy birds and screeching is their main method of communication. They raise and spread their striking crests when danger threatens or during mating.
Sulfur-crested cockatoos are mainly herbivores (granivores, frugivores) and will feed on the ground as well as in trees. They eat mainly seeds, nuts, blossoms, fruits, insects, and insect larvae. Newly planted and ripening grains are another source.
These birds are monogamous, forming bonds that last a long time. In the north, they breed from May until September, whereas in the south the season is from August to January. The usual nest is high in a tree hollow, most often near water. They breed once a year, when 2 to 3 white eggs are laid, to be incubated by both parents, for 27 to 30 days. Both parents feed the chicks. At approximately 70 days the chicks are ready to leave the nest but will stay with the parents, and family units will stay together indefinitely. Reproductive maturity for both males and females is around 3 to 4 years of age.
Sulphur-crested cockatoos are very popular as a cage-bird, but many of them escape to become pests in city areas. They are vulnerable to a viral disease where they lose their feathers and their bills grow misshapen. They can be shot or poisoned because they are a pest for farmers.
According to IUCN, the global population size has not been quantified. In some parts of Australia, they can be very abundant and may cause damage to cereal and fruit crops. Consequently, they can be shot or poisoned as pests. The introduced population in New Zealand may number fewer than 1000 birds. In Singapore, it is believed there are between 500 and 2000 birds. The population in Taiwan has been estimated at less than 100 breeding pairs. The ICUN lists the Sulphur-crested cockatoo as a "Least Concern, with a decreasing population trend due to ongoing habitat destruction.
Sulphur-crested cockatoos may no longer be imported into the United States as a result of the Wild Bird Conservation Act (WBCA). However, they have been bred in captivity, with Eleonora and Triton cockatoos the most common subspecies seen in aviculture in the USA and Europe. They are socially demanding pets and have a natural desire to chew wood and other hard and organic materials. They are also loud, often unleashing loud squawks or piercing screeches. They may also make aggressive, unpredictable movements which can frighten people and animals unaware of the accompanying affection.
One cockatoo called Fred was still alive at 100 years of age in 2014. Cocky Bennett of Tom Ugly's Point in Sydney was a celebrated sulphur-crested cockatoo who reached an age of 100 years or more. He had lost his feathers and was naked for much of his life, and died in the early years of the twentieth century. His body was stuffed and preserved after death. Another 'cocky', born in 1921 and residing in Arncliffe with his owner Charlie Knighton, was 76 years old in the late 1990s.
Sulphur-crested cockatoos, along with many other parrots, are susceptible to psittacine beak and feather disease, a viral disease, which causes birds to lose their feathers and grow grotesquely shaped beaks. The disease occurs naturally in the wild, and in captivity.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...