yellow_tailed_black_cockatoo_thmb

The Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo, is the largest cockatoo in Australia, small groups are often seen flying slowly around Mandeni Park accompanied by loud raucus screeching.


The Wyalah will sit on an old Sydney Wattle (Acacia longifolia) and listen for the sound of a chewing grub inside the stem. It will then proceed to tear off large strips of wood until it uncovers the grub, in the meantime leaving large wounds in the tree. During this operation their fixation on the job at hand is such that they even ignore nearby human observers. The scars of their chompings are readily found on these wattles, even quite young bushes, which can break and fall over at the wound. They also chew the large cones of the Banksia coastata found in the Rainforest area.

 

Usually only one chick survives, and it stays in the care of its parents for about six months. Juveniles squawk continuously, begging for food, and this makes family groups quite easy to follow at Mandeni.

 

 

 

Photo Gallery

Click on each image to view an enlargement.

Printable Photos

Please allow time for this page to load, the images are printable quality and as a result will be large format images, loading times will vary dependant on your internet connection.