Inca cockatoo

Inca cockatoo

We are delighted that Christine Arck has become the godmother of the Inca cockatoo.

The Inca cockatoo(Cacatua leadbeateri) is a rather small member of the cockatoo family (Cacatuidae) with a body length of 35 cm. It is found in the interior as well as in the south and west of Australia.
The extremely large and bright orange to red head crest is particularly striking on the Inca Cockatoo. It can grow up to 12 cm high. The rest of the plumage is white on the upper side and salmon pink on the underside. Many bird lovers consider it to be the most beautiful of all cockatoos due to its colouring and crest.
The Inca cockatoo's habitat is arid to semi-arid grassland or scrubland in inland Australia. However, they can also sometimes be found in open forests. Access to fresh water, e.g. in the form of a river, is particularly important. Like most cockatoos, the Inca cockatoo eats a mainly vegetarian diet. Its diet includes seeds, nuts, fruit, berries, roots and buds. This is why it can cause great damage when it appears in flocks on plantations or fields. It also supplements its diet with insects and their larvae.
The breeding season of the Inca cockatoo is between August and October. The nest is a tree cavity, which is usually at least 8 metres above the ground and about 1 metre long. A clutch usually consists of 2 to 5 eggs, which are incubated by both parents for around 24 days. The young need between 53 and 66 days to fledge. From time to time it happens that an Inca cockatoo takes possession of a pink cockatoo's nest. However, the other bird's eggs are not destroyed, but incubated and raised just like their own eggs.
Due to deforestation and increasing agriculture, the population of the Inca cockatoo has declined sharply in recent years. Fortunately, this does not apply to many sparsely populated areas in the interior of the country, which is why the Inca cockatoo is not yet officially categorised as endangered.