Little Corella

Description:

A small white cockatoo about 40cm long with small white crest, a fleshy blue ring around the eye and a feint pink patch between the eye and the bill. The upper and lower parts of the bill are about the same length. These birds are only slightly smaller than the better known sulphur crested cockatoo (Cacatua galerita) and often they will join a flock of C galerita and spend many days with them sharing their feeding grounds and habits. Very noisy and mischievous birds (like C galerita) they will often be seen entertaining themselves and showing off by hanging upside down, calling loudly with a piercing shriek, and biting off all the new growth of the tops of trees and drop them to the ground below. This one was doing just that when I took these shots. For me they always look like they've had a hard night.

Habitat:

They can be found in most parts of Australia where there are open trees with local grasslands. Also parts of New Guinea. They are also a beneficiary of modern human activities and numbers seem to be at their greatest just outside the big cities and towns.

Notes:

Very entertaining birds to watch. This one was attacked at one point by two Noisy miners (Manorina melanocephala) which are incredibly territorial. But two weren't enough - the Little corella just ignored them. (pic 4) Distribution in Australia http://bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:b...