Gang-gang Cockatoo

2007 Australian Capital Territory Trip report #8

During our visit to the Australian National Botanic Gardens in Canberra earlier this year I was delighted to see several Gang-gang Cockatoos. This is a species I do not see all that often because its range is nowhere near where I live.

Gang-gang Cockatoos are found in south eastern New South Wales, southern Victoria and occasionally in the extreme south east of South Australia. While not an abundant species like the Galah, for example, they are moderately common in suitable habitat.

The Gang-gang Cockatoo prefers forests and woodlands where there is more rainfall than on the plains. In the Great Dividing Range, they can be found from sea level through to about 2000 metres altitude. They also prefer timbered watercourses and valleys and can sometimes be found on farmlands and even in suburban gardens.

I’ve only see this species on a handful of occasions over the years. Many years ago when camping in the Snowy Mountains south-west of Canberra I remember an individual sitting in a pine tree eating seeds from the cones. All the parts of the cone he didn’t like were dropped like hail stones on to the top of our car. It is a wonder they didn’t leave any dents as some pieces were quite large.

On this occasion I had the frustration of trying to photograph these beautiful parrots. They seem to like sitting high in the canopy of the trees and not show themselves sufficiently for a good shot. Of the dozen or so photos I managed to get, only the one above was reasonable to show here. It shows a male; the female lacks the red feathers.