Western corella
| Western corella | |
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| At Blackpool Zoo, England | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Psittaciformes |
| Superfamily: | Cacatuoidea |
| Family: | Cacatuidae |
| Subfamily: | Cacatuinae |
| Tribe: | Cacatuini |
| Genus: | Cacatua |
| Subgenus: | Licmetis |
| Species: | C. pastinator |
| Binomial name | |
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Cacatua pastinator (Gould , 1841) |
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| Subspecies | |
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The western corella (Cacatua pastinator) formerly known as the western long-billed corella, is a species of white cockatoo endemic to south-western Western Australia.
Cacatuidae is one of three families of the large and diverse avian order Psittaciformes which consists of 370 species. Cockatoos are distinguished from other parrots by five main morphological features – a crest, lack of "green" dyck-texture in the plumage, yellow natal down, a gall bladder, and bridge temporal fossa
The Western Corella (also known as the Western Long-billed Corella) Cacatua pastinator consists of two geographically isolated sub-species, Butler’s Corella (Cacatua pastinator butleri) and Muir’s Corella (Cacatua pastinator pastinator)
One of these two isolated populations occurs in the northern wheat-belt of south-western Australia, the other, consisting of larger birds occurs in the far south west of Western Australia. The northern Cacatua pastinator butleri consists of generally of smaller birds than the southern Cacatua pastinator pastinator, which indicates that the two populations may have once been connected clinally.
The two separate populations consisting of two subspecies occur in south-west Western Australia. The population occurring in the northern wheatbelt of south-western Australia consist of 5000-10000 birds whilst the population in the far south west of Western Australia consists of approximately 1000 birds. The two isolated populations each consist of one of the identified sub species. Butler’s Corella (Cacatua pastinator butleri) occurs in the northern and central wheatbelt of Western Australia whilst Muir’s Corella (Cacatua pastinator pastinator) occurs in the very south-west area of Western Australia.
The habitat of Cacatua pastinator consists of undulating land with low relief (less than 100m) with more than 90% of native vegetation cleared for farming of wheat and sheep. The remaining woodland and shrub vegetation communities are restricted to small isolated patches and road reserves. Habitat critical to Cacatua pastinator comprises large eucalypts and other trees (either alive or dead) in forested areas or as lone paddock trees and roadside vegetation, preferred tree species are: • Marri (Corymbia calophylla) • Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) • Flooded Gum (Eucalyptus rudis) • Yate (Eucalyptus cornuta) • Paperbark (Melaleuca preissiana)
Cacatua pastinator have displayed three phases of movement patterns within the central wheatbelt of Western Australia, these phases are dependent on the age of the birds. Breeding takes place in spring, following fledging of nestlings the family groups join up with immature flocks and move to summer feeding locations, during the following month the young are weaned and the parents move back to the breeding ground during the January – March period, the juveniles do not return until May or June. Although there is some dispersal to other breeding areas, most individuals display attachment to their natal area with some birds being known to return after being absent for up to five years.
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Wikipedia