Red-tailed Black Cockatoo
Calyptorhynchus banksii
Males are all black with thick panels of bright red in their tail and females are black with yellow spots and yellow/orangey-red bands through their tail.
These cockatoos are a gracious species, often found in flocks or small groups that live in a diverse range of habitats.
Major threats are land clearing, habitat loss and fire which result in the loss of large trees and appropriate nesting sites.
WHAT THEY EAT
Red-tailed black cockatoos forage and feed mostly in the treetops during the daytime. Their diet consists mainly of seeds and nuts from eucalypts and sometimes acacias and banksias, as well as fruits and insects.
BREEDING
In order to breed, the red-tailed blacks require very large tree or trunk hollows in which to make their nests. They usually lay 1-2 eggs and it is the female that sits and incubates the egg, while the male feeds and brings back food for the nesting female.
