Cacatua roseiacapilla

Galah

Distribution: Continental Australia generally, chiefly inland areas, accidental to Tasmania

Notes: Also called Rose-Breasted Cockatoo, Common and familiar. In pairs or flocks, frequenting open country, chiefly inland plains interspersed with belts of timber, or trees bordering watercourses. Numbers of of the birds feed together on seeds of grasses and other plants; when disturbed they rise with loud cries. A flock in flight presents a most striking spectacle of colour as the wheeling birds alternately reveal their rosy breasts and grey backs. Galahs cause considerable damage to cultivated crops, but also devour large quantities of noxious plants.

Personal Note:

A horse stable used to give their horses a treat by supplying them with grain that had been used to brew beer . The grain lay about in piles at the back of the old Castle Hill Showground just north-west of Sydney. Not long after the grain appeared so did flocks of galahs.

The galahs absolutely stuffed themselves with the free goodies. It must have still had some alcohol content because galahs were seen walking about with their rolling parrot gait increasing until they just toppled over to lay on their backs helplessly croaking and whistling with glee

Needless to say these birds are among the clowns of nature.

The Galahs in the photograph were about four storeys high in the trees. They would watch me set up to get a photo and as soon as I moved the camera to my face they would move to another spot behind branches and stick their heads around to see my reaction

Nest: On the base of a hollow in a tall tree, lined with green leaves.

Eggs: Three to five, white. Breeding-season: Sept. to Nov. later according to conditions