Threatsĭevelopment that destroys forested land, the natural habitat of these birds, is one of the biggest threats to their survival. These birds reach maturity at around four years old. The chick fledges at ten to twelve weeks but stays with its parents for a much longer time. Once the egg hatches, both the male and female feed the chick by putting regurgitated seeds into its beak. The female incubates the egg while the male brings her food. They line the nest by chipping away at the interior of the nest until the floor is covered with wood chips. Like many cockatoos, they build nests in the hollows of tall eucalyptus trees, often near water on the banks of rivers. The male red tailed black cockatoo attracts the female by strutting along trees branches and bowing to her. In the wild they usually live only twenty years. These birds can live fifty years or more in captivity with the optimal diet and care. They then use their muscular tongue to remove seeds from their shells.īecause they can destroy crops they are considered pests by farmers. They can hold seeds with their claws due to having two toes facing forward and two backwards. Their powerful beaks can crack brazil nuts and even coconuts. They also eat fruits and nuts from other trees including the casuarinas and banksias. The red-tailed black cockatoo eats a diet consisting largely of seeds from Eucalyptus trees. When alarmed they make a low growling noise. These birds have a loud screech, almost like a trumpet, when they are flying. They spend their days foraging for food and then return to their nests in the evening. They sometimes travel with the yellow-tailed black cockatoo. The red-tailed cockatoo often travels in large flocks. The female has an off-white beak and the male’s beak is dark gray.Īdults are around twenty-three inches long and weigh twenty-four to thirty ounces making them one of the larger of the cockatoos. The females do not have red tail feathers but they do have spots of yellow on their wings, neck and head.īoth male and female have dark brown eyes and brown legs. ![]() They both have a black crest that they raise when they are threatened or agitated. The male’s plumage is a glossy black while the female’s is duller. Both male and female have black plumage but the males have red tail feathers – thus their name. The red-tailed black cockatoo is sexually dimorphic which means the male and female have differences in their appearance. ![]() Its closest relative is the glossy black cockatoo. There are five sub-species of this bird and they can be found in most parts of the country, even in some urban areas. The Tiwi people, in their folklore, believe that the red-tailed black cockatoo lead the dead to heaven. They can fluff up their feathers and conceal their beak earning them the name “bank’s hidden beak”. The scientific name is Calyptorhynchus banksii. The red-tailed black cockatoo is also known as the Banksian black cockatoo, Bank’s black cockatoo and the great-billed cockatoo. A Few things to consider before buying a red-tailed black cockatoo.
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