Little Corella

Little Corella
Little Corella
In Sydney, Australia
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Psittaciformes
Family: Cacatuidae
Subfamily: Cacatuinae
Genus: Cacatua
Subgenus: Licmetis
Species: C. sanguinea
Binomial name
Cacatua sanguinea
Gould , 1843
Combined Australian range of the Little and Western Corellas (in red).

The Little Corella, Cacatua sanguinea, also known as the Bare-eyed Cockatoo, is a white cockatoo native to Australia and southern New Guinea.

The Little Corella grows to 35–41 cm (14–16 in) in length and weighs 370–630 g (13–22 oz), with a mean weight of 525 g (1.16 lb).[1][2] It congregates in flocks of up to several thousand birds, which often include many Galahs. The bird generally roosts in trees overnight, and flies off to feed in the early morning with an almost deafening screeching. It mostly feeds on the ground, eating seeds including cereal crops such as wheat and barley. It is so common that it has become something of a pest throughout much of Australia, and can be destructive to the trees in which it perches, by chewing the bark off smaller twigs.

It was known as Birdirra among the Yindjibarndi people of the central and western Pilbara. They would keep them as pets, or traditionally cook and eat them. The downy feathers are used in traditional ceremonies and dances where they adorn head and armbands.[3]


Various views and plumages

  • Littlecorella1.jpg

  • Flock of Little Corellas at Moomba Gas Fields, S.A. Australia

  • Little Corella feeding at Lake Monger

  • Pair in Baulkham Hills, Sydney, Australia

  • Cacatua sanguinea -Australia-8c.jpg

References

  1. ^ CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (1992), ISBN 978-0849342585.
  2. ^ [1] (2011).
  3. ^ Juluwarlu Aboriginal Corporation (2005). Garruragan: Yindjibarndi Fauna. Juluwarlu Aboriginal Corporation. p. 9. ISBN 1875-946-543. 
  • BirdLife International (2004). Cacatua sanguinea. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 6 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern

External links

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