Gang-gang Cockatoo
[order] PSITTACIFORMES | [family] Cacatuidae | [latin] Callocephalon fimbriatum | [authority] Grant, 1803 | [UK] Gang-gang Cockatoo | [FR] Cacatoes gang-gang | [DE] Helmkkadu | [ES] Cacatua Gang gang | [NL] Helmkaketoe | [copyright picture] Ray Wilson
| Genus |
Species |
subspecies |
Region |
Range |
| Lophochroa |
fimbriatum |
|
|
|
| Callocephalon |
fimbriatum |
|
AU |
se Australia |
Genus
The Gang-gang Cockatoo was most often allied with the white cockatoos of the genus Cacatua. This has always been controversial due to the unusual appearance and coloration of the bird, especially its sexual dichromatism. New research has finally resolved the matter, with the Gang-gang Cockatoo being recognized as a distinctive early offshoot of the calyptorhynchine (dark) cockatoos. Considering the robust phylogeny of the cockatoos now established, a comparison of characters gained and lost during the evolution of cockatoos suggests that the Gang-gang Cockatoo – while of course much changed and adapted during the perhaps 20 million years since its last common ancestor with any other living species lived – is probably still very similar in overall appearance to how the earliest cockatoos would have looked, and certainly the most primitive-looking of the species alive today.
General plumage grey, each feather edged pale greyish-white; head and crest orange-red; lower abdomen and under tail-coverts edged orange-yellow; wings and tail-feathers grey; narrow periophthalmic ring grey; iris dark brown; feet grey; bill horn-coloured
Listen to the sound of Gang-gang Cockatoo
[audio:http://www.planetofbirds.com/MASTER/PSITTACIFORMES/Cacatuidae/sounds/Gang-gang Cockatoo.mp3]
Copyright remark: Most sounds derived from xeno-canto
recorded by Nigel Jackett
| wingspan min.: |
0 |
cm |
wingspan max.: |
0 |
cm |
| size min.: |
32 |
cm |
size max.: |
37 |
cm |
| incubation min.: |
30 |
days |
incubation max.: |
32 |
days |
| fledging min.: |
54 |
days |
fledging max.: |
58 |
days |
| broods: |
1 |
|
eggs min.: |
2 |
|
| |
|
|
eggs max.: |
3 |
|
Australasia : Southeast Australia from eastern New South Wales to outermost southeast of South Australia; formerly also King Island and occasional visitor to Tasmania; introduced to Kangaroo Island.
Montane forest to 2,000 m (6,700 ft), especially with eucalyptus groves; during winter in open woodland, cultivated areas and parks; occasionally in suburbs of towns.
Unlike most other cockatoos, Gang-gangs nest in young, solid trees, the females using their strong beaks to excavate nesting cavities. Also breed in the canopy of most trees. Gang-gang Cockatoos form close, monogamous pairs. The female chooses a nest hollow in a suitable tree and both sexes prepare the nest for egg-laying, lining it with wood-chips and dust by chewing at the sides of the hollow. Both sexes incubate the 2-3 eggs for about a month and care for the young. Fledging occurs after about 7 weeks. Parents feed their young for a further four to six weeks after fledging and family groups will be seen feeding together during the breeding season. In some cases, ‘cr
