The Zoochat Photographic Guide to Parrots

PSITTACIFORMES


The order Psittaciformes is a group of birds with a relatively uniform body-plan, possessing a compact body, large head, hooked bill, and zygodactylous feet (i.e. two toes forwards, and two toes backwards). There is, however, a wide range of sizes and colouration amongst the group. Distribution covers all of the tropics and some temperate areas, with the greatest diversity in the Australasian and Neotropical regions. They are typically forest-dwellers, although a large proportion of Australian species live in open or even arid country.


Photo of a Thick-billed Parrot Rhynchopsitta pachyrhyncha at Sacramento Zoo (USA) by @Great Argus showing the large hooked bill.


Thick-billed Parrot - ZooChat


Photo of the foot of a Kea Nestor notabilis at Willowbank Wildlife Reserve (NZ) by @Chlidonias showing the zygodactylous toe structure.


Kea (Nestor notabilis) foot - ZooChat


Photo of a range of parrot species in a taxidermy display at Pakawi Park (Belgium) by @KevinB showing some of the diversity in size and colour.


Bird Museum - Taxidermy specimens parrots, 2019-08-04 - ZooChat



There are around 100 genera of parrots, containing about 400 species in total. Historically they tended to all be contained within a single family, Psittacidae, divided into several subfamilies (at the least Cacatuinae for cockatoos, Loriinae for lories, and Psittacinae for all the others), although equally these three groups were often treated as full families. More recently genetic studies have helped resolve taxonomic issues and now the group is typically split between multiple families, many of which have multiple subfamilies.


Superfamily Strigopoidea: New Zealand parrots
Nestoridae: one genus with two extant species (Kaka and Kea).
Strigopidae: one monotypic genus (for the Kakapo).

Depending on taxonomy the New Zealand parrots may be placed in a single family (Strigopidae) or in two families (Nestoridae and Strigopidae). These species used to be placed amongst "true parrots" (i.e. the Psittacoidea) but are now generally accepted to be basal to the rest of the parrots.


Superfamily Cacatuoidea: cockatoos
Cacatuidae: five to eight genera with 21 species.

Generally now divided into three subfamilies (Nymphicinae for the Cockatiel; Calyptorhynchinae for the one or two genera and five species of "black cockatoos"; and Cacatuinae for the remaining genera). The subfamily Cacatuinae is divided into two tribes - the monotypic Microglossini for the Palm Cockatoo, and Cacatuini for the 14 species of so-called "white cockatoos" which depending on taxonomy are placed in two to four genera.

The cockatoos have always been treated as a separate group to the rest of the parrots (either as a full family or as a subfamily within Psittacidae) due to their distinctive anatomical differences, however the Cockatiel had more often been treated as being a "true parrot" which happened to look similar to the cockatoos. Only in more recent decades has it been firmly recognised as being an actual "mini cockatoo".


Superfamily Psittacoidea: true parrots
Psittaculidae: about 45 genera with about 180 species.
Psittacidae: about 37 genera with about 200 species.

The "true parrots" have been the subject of a lot of different opinions as to the arrangement of families, subfamilies, tribes, etc. Currently the usual treatment is to divide them into two families - Psittaculidae for almost all the Old World species, and Psittacidae for all the New World species plus two African genera (Poicephalus and Psittacus) - although these two families may alternatively be combined as one (Psittacidae). Several of the subfamilies listed below have also been treated as full families, notably Loriinae (the lories and lorikeets) has very often been treated as its own family.


Psittaculidae

*Subfamily Psittrichasinae: one monotypic genus (for Pesquet's Parrot).

*Subfamily Coracopsinae: one genus with two to four species (Vasa Parrots).

*Subfamily Platycercinae: about 13 genera with about 35 to 40 extant species (including Ground and Night Parrots, grass parrots, and the Australasian "broad-tailed parrots" - e.g. shining parrots, kakariki, rosellas, etc).

*Subfamily Psittacellinae: one genus with four species (New Guinea Tiger Parrots).

*Subfamily Loriinae: traditionally this subfamily was limited to the lories and lorikeets, which is a physically distinctive group of parrots, but genetic studies have shown an unexpected relationship with the Budgerigar and a perhaps-less-unexpected relationship with fig parrots. Currently the subfamily is treated as having three tribes: Loriini (about 13 genera with about 60 species of lories and lorikeets), Melopsittacini (monotypic, for the Budgerigar), and Cyclopsittini (two genera with five species of fig parrot).

*Subfamily Agapornithinae: three genera with about 25 species. This is another unexpected grouping resulting from genetic studies. Traditionally the nine species of African lovebirds (Agapornis) were considered to be related to the larger African parrots (in Poicephalus and Psittacus) but instead they form a group with the Asian hanging parrots (Loriculus).

*Subfamily Psittaculinae: ten extant genera and about 50 extant species. Divided into three tribes: Micropsittini (six species of pigmy parrots in a single genus); Polytelini (three genera with eight species of Australian parrots); and Psittaculini (six extant genera with about 35 species of Asian and Wallacean parrots, including ringneck parakeets, racquet-tailed parrots, etc; this tribe also contains several extinct species from oceanic islands).


Psittacidae:

*Subfamily Psittacinae: two African genera with 12 species (African Grey Parrots and the Poicephalus species, e.g. the Senegal Parrot).

*Subfamily Arinae: about 35 New World genera with about 180 species. The taxonomy of the American parrots is uncertain, with multiple tribes proposed. The tribes Arini (for the macaws and most of the conures) and Androglossini (for most of the other species including the amazons) are generally accepted, with other possible tribes including Forpini (for the single parrotlet genus Forpus) and Amoropsittacini (other parrotlet genera: Bolborhynchus, Nannopsittaca, Psilopsiagon and Touit).

 

Superfamily Strigopoidea: New Zealand parrots

Nestoridae: one genus with two extant species (Kaka and Kea).

Strigopidae: one monotypic genus (for the Kakapo).


Depending on taxonomy the New Zealand parrots may be placed in a single family (Strigopidae) or in two families (Nestoridae and Strigopidae). These species used to be placed amongst "true parrots" (i.e. the Psittacoidea) but are now generally accepted to be basal to the rest of the parrots.


The three extant species are restricted to the main islands of New Zealand, however there are also two extinct species of Nestor known, one from Norfolk Island in the Tasman Sea (between New Zealand and Australia) and one from the Chatham Islands (east of New Zealand).

 

Family Nestoridae
One genus


Nestor
Two extant species and two known extinct species


Chatham Islands Kaka Nestor chathamensis

Extinct. This species was described in 2014 and is known only from skeletal remains from the Chatham Islands, east of New Zealand. The structure of the skeleton suggests that this species of kaka spent a lot of time on the ground, although it could still fly. It became extinct after the arrival of Moriori settlers a few hundred years ago, before the arrival of Europeans.


Norfolk Island Kaka Nestor productus

Extinct. This species was found on Norfolk and Phillip Islands in the Tasman Sea, between New Zealand and Australia. It probably became extinct in the wild in the first part of the 19th century (c.1830s), after the establishment of a convict colony, although the last known living bird survived at London Zoo until c.1851.




New Zealand Kaka Nestor meridionalis
Two subspecies: meridionalis and septentrionalis.


Endemic to New Zealand, with the subspecies N. m. meridionalis being found on the South Island and Stewart Island, and N. m. septentrionalis on the North Island. These two subspecies are distinctive in appearance (the South Island birds being more brightly-coloured) but genetically there is no difference between them.


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, New Zealand - South Island Kaka N. m. meridionalis.


South Island kaka (Nestor meridionalis meridionalis) - ZooChat


Photo by @Tomek at Wilhelma Zoo (Germany) - North Island Kaka N. m. septentrionalis.


North Island Kaka (Nestor meridionalis septentrionalis), July 2017 - ZooChat


Before the populations were depleted by hunting, colour variants (red and yellow in particular) were common enough that each morph had its own Maori name. The taxidermy specimen in the photo below by @Chlidonias was taken at the Southland Museum (NZ).


yellow variant kaka (Nestor meridionalis) - ZooChat




Kea Nestor notabilis
Monotypic.


Endemic to New Zealand. Today it is found only in the alpine regions of the Southern Alps mountain range in the South Island, although subfossil remains show that at the time of human arrival c.1000 years ago the species was also found in the lowlands of the South Island and also in the lower North Island.


Photo by @Daniel Sörensen at Weltvogelpark Walsrode (Germany).


Kea (Nestor notabilis) - ZooChat


Photo by @gentle lemur at Birdworld (UK), showing the colour of the underwing.


Keas mating - ZooChat


Photo by @Chlidonias at Willowbank Wildlife Reserve (NZ), showing the colour of the flight feathers and the red rump feathers.


Kea (Nestor notabilis) stretching - ZooChat

 

Family Strigopidae
One monotypic genus



Strigops
One species


Kakapo Strigops habroptilus
Monotypic.


Endemic to New Zealand. This species is the largest living parrot by weight, and the only extant flightless parrot species. At the time of first human arrival c.1000 years ago it was found throughout the three main islands but had already disappeared from most of the eastern South Island by the time of European arrival, and became extinct on the North Island by the early 1900s. It was still common in the western forests of the South Island in the late 1800s and early 1900s, but by the late 1900s survived on that island only as a handful of birds in the southwest Fiordland mountains. A relatively large population (a couple of hundred birds) was discovered on Stewart Island in the late 1970s, which was then rapidly wiped out by feral cats. In the 1980s and 1990s all remaining birds (ultimately only about fifty individuals) were removed from mainland sites to predator-free offshore islands. Today the population is about 200 birds.



Photo by @Hix at Zealandia (NZ).


Sirocco the Kakapo - ZooChat

 

Given the fact you have been known to include photographs of mounted specimens in these threads - whereas I usually do not - I should really try to root through my photographs from Liverpool World Museum to see if I got any serviceable shots of their mounted specimen of this species.

Pretty sure I have a shot of their Lord Howe Swamphen, too.

 

That would be great. For the mammal photographic guides I don't mind using photos of museum specimens if that is all there is, but for the bird photographic guides I have restricted the photos of museum specimens to extinct taxa or to illustrate particular points (like size differences between species, or the Kaka morph earlier in the thread).

 

Superfamily Cacatuoidea: cockatoos


Cacatuidae: five to eight genera with 21 species.

Three subfamilies: Nymphicinae, Calyptorhynchinae, Cacatuinae.



The cockatoos as a group have always been treated separately to the rest of the parrots (either as a full family or as a subfamily within Psittacidae) due to their distinctive anatomical differences. However because of its long tail and small size the Cockatiel had more often been treated as being a "true parrot" which happened to have a cockatoo-like crest. Only in more recent decades has it been firmly recognised as being an actual "mini cockatoo".


Some species of cockatoos have prominent sexual dimorphism, especially in the Gang-gang, the Black Cockatoos (Calyptorhynchus), and the Cockatiel, whereas in others the sexual differences are limited to having differently coloured eyes. Only a few species have identical sexes.



The two photos below show the size range amongst cockatoo species. The "black cockatoos" are amongst the largest species while the Cockatiel is the smallest.


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 at Maleny Bird World (Australia).
Left to right are Greater Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Red-tailed Black Cockatoo (at back), Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo (at front), Long-billed Corella, and Galah (at back).


Five Species of Cockatoo In One Photo - ZooChat


Photo by @KevinB of a taxidermy display at Pakawi Park (Belgium).
On the left are two specimens of Red-vented (Philippine) Cockatoos, and on the right is a mutation Cockatiel. For size comparison the Red-vented Cockatoo is a smaller species than any of the species in the preceding photo (roughly 30cm in length versus c.40cm for the Long-billed Corella and c.35cm for the Galah).


Taxidermy specimens Red-vented cockatoo (Cacatua haematuropygia) and Cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus),2019-08-04 - ZooChat



Generally the family is now divided into three subfamilies: Nymphicinae for the Cockatiel; Calyptorhynchinae for the one or two genera and five species of "black cockatoos"; and Cacatuinae for the remaining genera. The subfamily Cacatuinae is divided into two tribes - the monotypic Microglossini for the Palm Cockatoo, and Cacatuini for the 14 species of so-called "white cockatoos" which, depending on taxonomy, are placed in two to four genera.


All species (and most of the subspecies) are depicted in the Zoochat galleries.


Nymphicinae

Nymphicus
Cockatiel Nymphicus hollandicus


Calyptorhynchinae

Calyptorhynchus
Red-tailed Black Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus banksii
Glossy Black Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus lathami

Zanda
Baudin's Black Cockatoo Zanda baudinii
Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo Zanda funerea
Carnaby's Black Cockatoo Zanda latirostris


Cacatuinae

Probosciger
Palm Cockatoo Probosciger aterrimus

Cacatua
Umbrella (White) Cockatoo Cacatua alba
Solomons (Ducorp's) Cockatoo Cacatua ducorpsii
Greater Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Cacatua galerita
Goffin's Cockatoo (Tanimbar Corella) Cacatua goffiniana
Red-vented (Philippine) Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia
Salmon-crested (Moluccan) Cockatoo Cacatua moluccensis
Blue-eyed Cockatoo Cacatua ophthalmica
Western Corella Cacatua pastinator
Little Corella (Bare-eyed Cockatoo) Cacatua sanguinea
Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Cacatua sulphurea
Long-billed Corella Cacatua tenuirostris

Callocephalon
Gang-gang Cockatoo Callocephalon fimbriatum

Eolophus
Galah Eolophus roseicapilla

Lophochroa
Major Mitchell's (Leadbeater's or Pink) Cockatoo Lophochroa leadbeateri

 

Family Cacatuidae

Subfamily Nymphicinae
One monotypic genus



Nymphicus
One species


Cockatiel Nymphicus hollandicus
Monotypic.

Endemic to Australia, where it occurs over most of the continent in arid country and dry woodlands.



Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - male bird.


Cockatiel - ZooChat



Photo by @Hix at Cleland Wildlife Park (Australia) - female bird.


Cockatiel female - ZooChat



Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - male bird in flight.


Cockatiel - ZooChat

 

Looks like I don't have any shots of those species - from memory, when I last went to the museum the precious Liverpool Pigeon specimen was on display for a limited period (a mere fortnight, I seem to recall) and photography of *that* was definitely not permitted, so I suspect that will be why I lack photographs of the kaka and the swamphen too.... or possibly I didn't quite appreciate at the time that they were almost as precious as the pigeon and hence worth photographing

However, whilst I was searching I tracked down the following shot of a Glaucous Macaw which will come in handy down the line, taken at the Museum fur Naturkunde in Berlin:



Frustratingly, it appears that I didn't get any shots of the Cuban Macaw specimen which was displayed in the same temporary exhibition of all historically-extant macaw species - I recall that there were several people next to the display case in question and I therefore could only view it from a distance. I thought I'd returned to that case once they moved on, but it seems I either forgot or somehow didn't back up those photos.

 

Family Cacatuidae

Subfamily Calyptorhynchinae
One or two genera


Calyptorhynchus
Red-tailed Black Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus banksii
Glossy Black Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus lathami

Zanda
Baudin's Black Cockatoo Zanda baudinii
Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo Zanda funerea
Carnaby's Black Cockatoo Zanda latirostris


The genus Zanda is a fairly recent split from Calyptorhynchus (within the last decade) and is not accepted by all sources, e.g. Cornell's Birds of the World website retains all species in Calyptorhynchus.

The two species retained in Calyptorhynchus have prominent sexual differences in the plumage, as can be seen in the photos below, while in the three species split to Zanda the sexual differences are largely in the colour of the beak and eye-rings.

 

Calyptorhynchus
Two species


Red-tailed Black Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus banksii
Five subspecies: banksii, escondidus, graptogyne, naso, samueli.

Also known as the Banksian Cockatoo.

Endemic to Australia, found mainly across the north and down the west and east of the continent. Broadly, C. b. banksii (including C. b. macrorhynchus) is found across northern Australia and Queensland, C. b. escondidus is from Western Australia, C. b. graptogyne from a small isolated area in the southeast (on the border of South Australia and Victoria), C. b. naso from the southwest corner of Western Australia, and C. b. samueli across central Australia.

A genetic study of this species, published in 2020, found that there were no genetic differences between the two northern subspecies, C. b. banksii (of Queensland) and C. b. macrorhynchus (of northern Australia), hence the two were combined into C. b. banksii; and also that the Western Australian populations of the central subspecies C. b. samueli were found to be most closely related to C. b. naso of southwestern Western Australia, and hence were described as a new subspecies, C. b. escondidus.
A summary (with a map of the subspecies' distributions) can be read here: Hidden in plain sight: introducing the new subspecies of red-tailed black-cockatoo!


The subspecies escondidus and graptogyne are not pictured in the Zoochat galleries.


Photo by @ro6ca66 at Hamerton Zoo Park (UK), showing the sexual dimorphism in this species (female on left, male on right). Zootierliste and presumably the zoo itself treat these as the subspecies banskii, but they came from Darling Downs Zoo in Australia which is listed as keeping the subspecies samueli, so here I am just using the photo as an illustration of the differences between the sexes.


Red-tailed black-cockatoo : Hamerton : 15 Jun 2018 - ZooChat


Photo by @Simon Hampel at Taronga Zoo (Australia), showing the colouration of the undertail (this is a female bird - in males the undertail is bright red with no barring). The display birds at Taronga are listed as being non-subspecific.


Red-tailed Black Cockatoo - Jan 2009 - ZooChat


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - subspecies banksii (female on left, male on right).


Red-tailed Black Cockatoos - ZooChat


Photo by @LaughingDove in the wild, Australia - male of the subspecies banksii (from within the range of what was formerly known as C. b. macrorhynchus).


Red-tailed Black-cockatoo - Pine Creek - ZooChat


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - male of the subspecies naso.


Red-tailed Black Cockatoo - ZooChat


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - female of the subspecies samueli.


Red-tailed Black Cockatoo - ZooChat



Glossy Black Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus lathami
Three subspecies: erebus, halmaturinus, lathami.

Endemic to eastern Australia. C. l. erebus is found in central Queensland, C. l. halmaturinus is from Kangaroo Island (off the South Australia coast), and C. l. lathami is found from Queensland to Victoria. There is some disagreement as to the validity of the subspecies.

Only the subspecies lathami is pictured in the Zoochat galleries.


Photo by @Hix at Taronga Zoo (Australia) - male bird, probably of the subspecies lathami.


Glossy Black Cockatoo - ZooChat


Photo by @Dannelboyz in the wild, Australia - female bird of the subspecies lathami.


Glossy Black Cockatoo (ssp. lathami) - ZooChat

 

Zanda
Three species


Baudin's Black Cockatoo Zanda baudinii
Monotypic.

Also known as the Long-billed Black Cockatoo.

Formerly known as the White-tailed Black Cockatoo, with two subspecies (baudinii and latirostris). The latter has since been split as a full species.

Endemic to southwestern Australia.


Photo by @Goura at the Armadale Reptile and Wildlife Centre (Australia) - female on left, male on right. Note the beak and eye-ring colour (pale beak and grey eye-ring in the female, and dark grey beak and pinkish eye-ring in the male; and also the colour difference in the ear-patch).


Baudin's Cockatoos - ZooChat


Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo Zanda funerea
Two subspecies: funerea and xanthonota.
[If retained in the genus Calyptorhynchus then these subspecies are spelled funereus and xanthonotus due to the change in tense]

Endemic to Australia, where it is found in the coastal areas of the east and southeast of the continent. Z. f. funerea is found from central Queensland to eastern Victoria, and Z. f. xanthonota is from western Victoria, eastern South Australia, and Tasmania. The latter subspecies has more prominent yellow scalloping on the underparts, while the nominate subspecies has darker plumage.


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 at Darling Downs Zoo (Australia) - male of the subspecies funerea. Note the black beak and pinkish eye-ring.


Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo (Zanda funerea) - ZooChat


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 in the wild, Australia - female of the subspecies funerea. Note the pale beak and grey eye-ring. The tail panels are pale yellow and can look white in photos but have vermiculations which are lacking in the tail panels of the White-tailed Black Cockatoos.


Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo - ZooChat


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 in the wild, Australia - male of the subspecies funerea in flight, showing the yellow tail panels well.


Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo - ZooChat


Photo by @Tomek at Loro Parque (Canary Islands) - male of the subspecies xanthonota.


Tasmanian Yellow-tailed Black-cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus funereus xanthonotu - ZooChat


Photo by @Hix at Parndana Wildlife Park (Australia) - female of the subspecies xanthonota.


Yellow-tailed Cockatoo female - ZooChat


Carnaby's Black Cockatoo Zanda latirostris
Monotypic.

Also known as the Short-billed Black Cockatoo.

Formerly treated as a subspecies of C. baudinii, which was then known as the White-tailed Black Cockatoo.

Endemic to southwestern Australia.


Photo by @nanoboy at Ballarat Bird World (Australia) - female on left, male on right. Note the beak and eye-ring colour (pale beak and grey eye-ring in the female, and dark grey beak and pinkish eye-ring in the male; and also the colour difference in the ear-patch).


Ballarat Bird World - ZooChat


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 at Maleny Bird World (Australia) - female bird, showing the white panels on the tail.


Carnaby's Black Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus latirostris) - ZooChat

 

Family Cacatuidae

Subfamily Cacatuinae
Three to five genera


This subfamily is further divided into two tribes: Microglossini for the Palm Cockatoo and Cacatuini for the so-called "white cockatoos".



Tribe Microglossini
One monotypic genus


Probosciger
Palm Cockatoo Probosciger aterrimus



Tribe Cacatuini
Two to four genera

The genus Callocephalon (the Gang-gang Cockatoo) is always kept separate, but Eolophus (the Galah) and Lophochroa (the Leadbeater's Cockatoo) may be combined in Cacatua.


Cacatua
Umbrella (White) Cockatoo Cacatua alba
Solomons (Ducorp's) Cockatoo Cacatua ducorpsii
Greater Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Cacatua galerita
Goffin's Cockatoo (Tanimbar Corella) Cacatua goffiniana
Red-vented (Philippine) Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia
Salmon-crested (Moluccan) Cockatoo Cacatua moluccensis
Blue-eyed Cockatoo Cacatua ophthalmica
Western Corella Cacatua pastinator
Little Corella (Bare-eyed Cockatoo) Cacatua sanguinea
Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Cacatua sulphurea
Long-billed Corella Cacatua tenuirostris

Callocephalon
Gang-gang Cockatoo Callocephalon fimbriatum

Eolophus
Galah Eolophus roseicapilla

Lophochroa
Leadbeater's (Major Mitchell's or Pink) Cockatoo Lophochroa leadbeateri

 

Family Cacatuidae

Subfamily Cacatuinae

Tribe Microglossini
One monotypic genus



Probosciger
One species.


Palm Cockatoo Probosciger aterrimus
Up to six subspecies have been commonly used, although their validity is questionable: alecto, aterrimus, goliath, intermedius, macgillivrayi, stenolophus.


Found in New Guinea and some of the surrounding islands, and on the Cape York Peninsula of Australia. Of the six subspecies listed above, P. a .alecto would be from the western islands off the Vogelkop Peninsula (otherwise included within P. a. goliath); P. a. aterrimus is found in the Trans-Fly region of southern New Guinea (although extended further by some authors); P. a. goliath is found along the length of western and southern New Guinea except the Trans-Fly; P. a. intermedius is from the Aru Islands (otherwise included within P. a. goliath); P. a. macgillivrayi is found on the Cape York Peninsula of Australia; and P. a. stenolophus is found across northern New Guinea, including Japen Island.


A 2007 paper by Murphy et al titled "The Phylogeography of Palm Cockatoos, Probosciger aterrimus, in the Dynamic Australo-Papuan Region", which examined the DNA of 71 Palm Cockatoos from 17 locations across their range, found only two genetic groups, one in the west of New Guinea (corresponding to part of the range of P. a. goliath) and one in the rest of the range. As they phrased it in their paper, this casts "considerable doubt on the remaining subspecies", and they combined all the non-western populations as P. a. aterrimus. The European breeding programme (EEP) manages their zoo population as these two subspecies. Visually the distinction between them is just in size (goliath is the larger of the two). The sexes are identical.



Photo by @Tomek at Belfast Zoo (UK) - subspecies aterrimus.


Palm Cockatoo (Probosciger aterrimus) - ZooChat


Photo by @Casuarius_casuarius at Jurong Bird Park (Singapore) - subspecies goliath.


Goliath Palm Cockatoos (Probosciger aterrimus) - ZooChat

 

Family Cacatuidae

Subfamily Cacatuinae

Tribe Cacatuini
Two to four genera

The genus Callocephalon (the Gang-gang Cockatoo) is always kept separate from the other cockatoos, but Eolophus (the Galah) and Lophochroa (the Leadbeater's Cockatoo) may be combined in Cacatua.



Cacatua
Eleven extant species

There are skeletal remains of large cockatoos, roughly the size of the living Greater Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, known from recent deposits (within the last few thousand years, post human arrival to the islands) from New Ireland and the Mussau Islands (both within the Bismarck archipelago east of New Guinea), and from New Caledonia. These remains have been mentioned in passing in papers by palaeontologist David Steadman, but have not been described as yet.



Umbrella Cockatoo Cacatua alba
Monotypic.

Also known as White Cockatoo.

Endemic to the Moluccan islands in eastern Indonesia. Also introduced to Taiwan.


Photo by @Terry Thomas at the Bali Bird Park (Indonesia), showing the raised crest.


White cockatoo portrait - ZooChat


Photo by @ThylacineAlive at Southwick's Zoo (USA), showing the yellow undertail feathers and lowered crest.


Umbrella Cockatoo - ZooChat



Solomons Cockatoo Cacatua ducorpsii
Monotypic.

Also known as Ducorp's Cockatoo or Solomons Corella.

Endemic to the Solomon Islands, east of New Guinea.


Photo by @vogelcommando at Zoo Veldhoven (Netherlands)


Ducorps cockatoo - ZooChat



Greater Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Cacatua galerita
Four subspecies: eleonora, fitzroyi, galerita, triton.

Found in northern and eastern Australia, and in New Guinea. Introduced to southwestern Australia in the Perth region, and to Singapore, Palau, and New Zealand.

C. g. eleonora is from the Aru Islands off western New Guinea, C. g. fitzroyi is from northern Australia, C. g. galerita is found in eastern Australia, and C. g. triton is from New Guinea.

All four subspecies are pictured in the Zoochat galleries.


Photo by @vogelcommando at Zoo Veldhoven (Netherlands) - Aru Islands subspecies eleonora; this is the smallest of the four subspecies.


Eleonora sulphur-crested cockatoo - ZooChat


Photo by @LaughingDove in the wild, Australia - northern Australian subspecies fitzroyi.


Sulphur-crested Cockatoo - Litchfield National Park - ZooChat


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - Australian subspecies galerita.


Sulphur-crested Cockatoo - ZooChat


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - Australian subspecies galerita. This photo was taken on Horn Island in the Torres Strait (between Australia and New Guinea), and depicts a bird from the former subspecies C. g. queenslandica (of the Cape York Peninsula and Torres Strait islands) which is now combined with C. g. galerita.


Sulphur-crested Cockatoo - ZooChat


Photo by @vogelcommando at Tierpark Gettorf (Germany) - New Guinea subspecies triton.


Triton cockatoo - ZooChat



Goffin's Cockatoo Cacatua goffiniana
Monotypic.

Also known as Tanimbar Corella.

Endemic to the Tanimbar Islands in eastern Indonesia. Introduced also to the Kai Islands in eastern Indonesia, to Peurto Rico, and to Singapore.


Photo by @gentle lemur at Paradise Park (UK).


Goffin's cockatoo - ZooChat



Red-vented Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia
Monotypic.

Also known as Philippine Cockatoo.

Endemic to the Philippine Islands.


Photo by @gentle lemur at Paradise Park (UK) - female on left (red eyes), and male on right (blackish-brown eyes).


Philippine cockatoo pair - ZooChat

 

Salmon-crested Cockatoo Cacatua moluccensis
Monotypic.

Also known as Moluccan Cockatoo.

Endemic to Seram in eastern Indonesia. Introduced to the Hawaiian Island of Oahu.


Photo by @KevinB at Pairi Daiza (Belgium), showing the pinkish hue to the feathers.


Salmon-crested cockatoo (Cacatua moluccensis), 2019-10-05 - ZooChat


Photo by @gentle lemur at Drayton Manor Theme Park (UK), showing the crest raised and lowered on the two birds. It's a little difficult to see but the bird on the left is the female (paler brown eyes) and male on the right (black eyes).


Moluccan cockatoos - ZooChat



Blue-eyed Cockatoo Cacatua ophthalmica
Monotypic.

Endemic to the island of New Britain, east of New Guinea.


Photo by @ronnienl at Weltvogelpark Walsrode (Germany).


Blue-eyed cockatoo - ZooChat



Western Corella Cacatua pastinator
Two subspecies: derbyi (syn. butleri) and pastinator.

Also known as Western Long-billed Corella, which is the potential to be a little confusing because the actual Long-billed Corella (C. tenuirostris) has been introduced to western Australia.

Endemic to southwestern Australia, with C. p. derbyi in the north of the range and C. p. pastinator in the extreme southwest in the Lake Muir area.

The visual differences between the subspecies are not great, and I don't know which ones are kept overseas. In Australia the one in aviculture is C. p. derbyi (the most common in the wild), whereas C. p. pastinator is in a managed breeding programme. One of the photos in the Zoochat galleries, from a UK zoo, is labelled as being C. p. pastinator but I don't know what this is based on. There are no photos of wild birds in the Zoochat galleries.


Photo by @Newzooboy at Cordoba Zoo (Spain).


Western Corella - Jan 2014 - ZooChat



Little Corella Cacatua sanguinea
Five subspecies: gymnopis, normantoni, sanguinea, transfreta, westralensis.

Also known as Bare-eyed Cockatoo or Bare-eyed Corella.

Found in Australia and southern New Guinea. C. s. gymnopis is found in central and eastern Australia (also introduced to Perth in Western Australia), C. s. normantoni is found on the west side of Australia's Cape York Peninsula, C. s. sanguinea is from northern Australia, C. s. transfreta is from the Trans-Fly region of southern New Guinea, and C. s. westralensis is from northwest Western Australia.

The only subspecies pictured in the Zoochat galleries seem to be the eastern gymnopis and the northern sanguinea.


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - eastern subspecies gymnopis.


Little Corella - ZooChat


Photo by @LaughingDove in the wild, Australia - northern subspecies sanguinea.


Little Corellas over East Point, Darwin - ZooChat



Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo Cacatua sulphurea
Four to seven subspecies: abbotti, citrinocristata, djampeana, occidentalis, parvula, paulandrewi, sulphurea.

Also known as Yellow-crested Cockatoo. The subspecies citrinocristata is called the Citron-crested Cockatoo.

Found on Sulawesi and in the Lesser Sundas, in eastern Indonesia. Also introduced to Hong Kong and Singapore.

C. s. abbotti is from the Masalembu Islands, C. s. citrinocristata is from the island of Sumba, C. s. djampeana is from Tanah Jampea (in the Selayar Islands, south of Sulawesi), C. s. occidentalis is from most of the Lesser Sundas group (Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, Komodo, etc), C. s. parvula is from Timor, C. s. paulandrewi is from the Tukangbesi Islands (east of Sulawesi), and C. s. sulphurea is from Sulawesi.

The subspecies djampeana and paulandrewi would otherwise be included within C. s. sulphurea; and occidentalis is more usually included in C. s. parvula.

The subspecies djampeana, paulandrewi and parvula do not appear to be pictured in the Zoochat galleries.


Photo by @Jo Kuyken at Zoo Veldhoven (Netherlands) - subspecies abbotti (Abbott's Sulphur-crested Cockatoo).


Abbott's sulphur-crested cockatoo (Cacatua sulphurea abbotti) - ZooChat


Photo by @Parrotsandrew at The Jungle (UK) - subspecies citrinocristata (Citron-crested Cockatoo); note the colour of the crest, which is bright orange rather than pale yellow as in the other subspecies.


Citron-crested Cockatoo, 23rd September 2014 - ZooChat


Photo by @Jo Kuyken at Zoo Veldhoven (Netherlands) - subspecies occidentalis (Sumbawa Sulphur-crested Cockatoo).


Western sulphur-crested cockatoo (Cacatua sulphurea occidentalis) - ZooChat


Photo by @Parrotsandrew at Southport Zoo (UK) - subspecies sulphurea (Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo).


Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo 4th March 1995 - ZooChat



Long-billed Corella Cacatua tenuirostris
Monotypic.

Also known as Slender-billed Corella.

Found in southeastern Australia, including Tasmania. Also introduced to Perth in Western Australia.


Photo by @Tomek at Weltvogelpark Walsrode (Germany)


Long-billed Corella (Cacatua tenuirostris) - ZooChat

 

Callocephalon
One species



Gang-gang Cockatoo Callocephalon fimbriatum
Monotypic.


Found only in southeastern Australia, although there is also a small introduced population on Kangaroo Island off South Australia.



Photo by @Chlidonias at Moonlit Sanctuary (Australia) - male bird.


male gang-gang cockatoo (Callocephalon fimbriatum) - ZooChat


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 at Darling Downs Zoo (Australia) - female bird.


Gang-gang Cockatoo (Callocephalon fimbriatum) - ZooChat


Photo by @Astrobird at Moonlit Sanctuary (Australia) - male on left, female on right.


Gang Gang Cockatoo pair - ZooChat

 

Eolophus
One species



Galah Eolophus roseicapilla
Three subspecies: albiceps, kuhli, roseicapilla.


Has also been placed in the genus Cacatua, although this is not common. There is dispute as to whether the specific name should be spelled roseicapilla or roseicapillus (I have used the former as this seems most common in taxonomy sources today, although I think it should be the latter in order to match the genus).


Also known (but only outside Australia) as the Roseate Cockatoo or Rose-breasted Cockatoo.


Found throughout most of Australia. Also introduced to New Zealand. E. r. albiceps is from eastern Australia, E. r. kuhli is from northern Australia, and E. r. roseicapilla is from western Australia. There is probably a large degree of overlap in the distribution of the subspecies, especially as there has been a substantial range increase since European settlement.

The western subspecies used to be named E. r. assimilis due to confusion over where the type specimen was collected (it was thought to be from the east coast, hence until the 1980s the eastern subspecies was treated as the nominate, but historical records and DNA of the specimen showed it to have actually been collected in Western Australia).


There do not appear to be any photos of the northern subspecies kuhli in the Zoochat galleries.



Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - eastern subspecies albiceps, with female on left (red eyes) and male on right (blackish-brown eyes).


Galahs feeding - ZooChat


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 in the wild, Australia - juvenile bird of the eastern subspecies albiceps.


Galah - juvenile - ZooChat


Photo by @LaughingDove in the wild, Australia - western subspecies roseicapilla.


Galahs - ZooChat


Photo by @Jordan-Jaguar97 at Blackpool Zoo (UK) - western subspecies roseicapilla (as listed on Zootierliste).


Roseate Cockatoo at Blackpool Zoo 19/05/12 - ZooChat

 

Lophochroa
One species

Commonly retained in the genus Cacatua.



Leadbeater's Cockatoo Lophochroa leadbeateri
Two subspecies: leadbeateri and mollis.


Also commonly known as the Major Mitchell's Cockatoo or Pink Cockatoo.


Found in the arid country of inland Australia, with L. l. leadbeateri in the east and L. l. mollis in the centre and west. They differ in crest colour, with the nominate subspecies having a yellow band while mollis normally does not. However captive populations - even within Australia - are generally not assigned to subspecies, and the colour of the crest probably couldn't be relied upon in captive birds due to mixed breeding.



Photo by @ronnienl at Jurong Bird Park (Singapore), showing the raised crest.


Major Mitchell's cockatoo - ZooChat


Photo by @Chlidonias at Auckland Zoo (NZ), showing the colour of the underwings.


Major Mitchells cockatoo (Cacatua leadbeateri) - ZooChat


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - eastern subspecies leadbeateri.


Major Mitchell Cockatoo - ZooChat