The Major Mitchell's Cockatoo, Lophocroa leadbeateri also known as Leadbeater's Cockatoo or
Pink Cockatoo is a medium-sized cockatoo restricted to arid and semi-arid
inland areas of Australia

Description
With its soft-textured white and salmon-pink plumage and large, bright
red and yellow crest, it is generally recognised as the most beautiful
of all cockatoos. It is named in honour of Major Sir Thomas Mitchell,
who wrote "Few birds more enliven the monotonous hues of the Australian
forest than this beautiful species whose pink-coloured wings and flowing
crest might have embellished the air of a more voluptuous region".
Distribution and Habitat
Unlike the Galah, Major Mitchell's Cockatoo has declined rather than increased
as a result of man-made changes to the arid interior of Australia. Where
Galahs readily occupy cleared and part-cleared land, Major Mitchell's
Cockatoo requires extensive woodlands, particularly favouring Callitris,
Allocasuarina and Eucalyptus. In contrast to other cockatoos, Major Mitchell
pairs will not nest close to one another; in consequence, they cannot
tolerate fragmented, partly-cleared habitats, and their range is contracting. |