General Description

A stocky, medium-sized cockatoo. Mostly white, with pale yellow of varying strength on the underside of wings and tails. Pale pink between edges of the bill and eye, sometimes joining across the top of the bill in strongly-coloured birds. Feathers of head, neck and breast have pink bases, rarely seen but sometimes become visible when ruffled by wind or preening. Short, pale bill in comparison to other corellas. Up to 40 cm long; wingspan to 100 cm.

Biology

These birds are noisy, active and conspicuous. They feed on seeds of grasses and herbaceous plants as well as roots, shoots, flowers, insects and their larvae. Often seen when feeding on the ground in large flocks, where they spend a lot of time digging for roots and seeds. They can store seeds under their tongue, to be de-husked and eaten individually later.

Distribution

Across Australia.

Habitat

Near permanent water in arid or semi-arid zones. Farms, grassland and other open plains, where water is bordered by trees.

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