BAUDIN'S BLACK COCKATOO
Did you know there could be Baudin's black cockatoos or other threatened wildlife living near you? Discover what animals need protection in your local area using WWF-Australia’s ‘My Backyard’ tool, and find out how well they’re being cared for.
For a large cockatoo, the Baudin's black cockatoo sure is mysterious. We know broadly where it can be found – in the dense eucalypt forests of the far southwest Australia – but precious little is known about the bird's habits or movements. Unlike its more familiar cousin, the world's only other white-tailed black cockatoo – the Carnaby's cockatoo – the Baudin’s remains something of an enigma. It makes the task of conserving this endangered species all the more challenging. But with total numbers hovering at just 10,000, time is of the essence. What we do know is that this cockatoo mainly feeds high in the forest canopy on the seeds of marri and that its penchant for commercial fruit crops can prove deadly. While its decline is primarily due to habitat loss, some orchardists illegally shoot birds found raiding their crops.
Baudin's black cockatoo
Setting up solar transmitters
WWF is proud to be working with Murdoch University on the Baudin’s Telemetry Tracking Project – a world-first for a parrot species. Birds that have been rehabilitated after injury at the Kaarakin Black Cockatoo Conservation Centre in the Perth hills are fitted with telemetry trackers, then released and monitored by Murdoch’s research team. The trackers give us all sorts of insights, like where the birds have travelled, how fast they've been flying and their style of flight. This is the first time this technology has been used on a parrot species and will help us to better understand the cockatoo's behaviour and threats to its survival.
Combatting the illegal shooting of Baudin's cockatoos
Southwest Western Australia is a productive apple and pear-growing region. Unfortunately Baudin's cockatoos also have a taste for fruit and can cause significant damage to crops. Sadly, some orchardists see illegal shooting as the only way to protect their produce. Exclusion netting is, in fact, the most effective way to protect fruit crops from bird damage and has the added benefit of providing protection from hail, frost and sunburn. While up-front costs are higher than other methods, field tests of netting have demonstrated improved yields and reduced water use. The netting can pay for itself in a relatively short time.
Report illegal shooting
Some orchardists have resorted to shooting cockatoos. It is estimated that around 200 Baudin's cockatoos are shot each year, but the actual figure may be much higher. Even the most conservative estimates of bird shooting deaths suggest that the Baudin’s cockatoo may become extinct within our lifetime. WWF encourages responsible growers, fruit-pickers, local communities and birdwatchers to play their part in conservation efforts by reporting the illegal shooting of black cockatoos.
Why it matters
That one of Australia's largest parrots remains a mystery to us is enchanting; that it is also endangered is alarming. Sadly the Baudin's black cockatoo may not be around long enough for us to learn its secrets.
The Baudin's cockatoo lives mainly in flocks but birds sometimes congregate in large numbers at nightly roosting sites, especially in winter. The cockatoos generally live in pairs or small groups in summer, when they confine themselves to karri and marri forests, nesting in the hollows of old eucalypt trees, if they can find them. Even with a secure nesting site, the Baudin's cockatoo's reproductive rate is frighteningly slow; each pair produce, on average, just one chick every two years. Take a mature breeding bird out of the equation, due to illegal shooting, and it can threaten an entire generation. Living such a precarious existence, and facing a raft of pressures, the magnificent Baudin's cockatoo needs urgent support to secure its future.
Species bio
Common Name
Baudin’s black cockatoo
Scientific Name
Calyptorhynchus baudinii
Stats
Length: 50-57cm – Weight: 560-770g Estimated population: 10,000
Status
Listed as Endangered (Wildlife Conservation Act) and under the IUCN Red List.
Did you know?
When Baudin’s call they make a sound like “bunyip-bunyip” or “whichea-whichea”
Named in honour of 18th century French explorer and naturalist Thomas Nicolas Baudin, this species of white-tailed black cockatoo can be distinguished from the Carnaby’s cockatoo by its narrower and longer upper bill, its calls and its preference for more moist temperate forests and woodlands.
Threats
The Baudin's cockatoo has already disappeared from over 25% of its former range, mainly due to landclearing for agriculture. And habitat loss continues – for urban development, forestry and mining operations. However, the single greatest and most urgent threat to this cockatoo is illegal shooting by orchardists. Where fortunate cockatoos can find suitable breeding habitat, nesting hollows are in short supply and this poses an additional threat. Suitable hollows take 130-220 years to develop and are also fiercely coveted by other parrots, wood ducks and European honeybees.
What you can do to help
Find out if Baudin's black cockatoos or other threatened wildlife live near you using WWF-Australia’s ‘My Backyard’ tool, and learn how you can help them thrive again.
