Enduro’s assist in Glossy-Black Cockatoo conservation project

In January 2020, wildlife conservation ecologist Professor Sarah Legge noticed something strange.

A flock of Glossy Black-Cockatoos had shown up in her area following the loss of their original habitat during the 2019 Black Summer fires. Normally considered a sedentary bird, staying close to their food and nesting trees, these birds had been forced to take refuge further north.

But even more concerning was the lack any signs of recent breeding. There were no juveniles in the flock.

Her observations and concerns prompted her friend and neighbour, Margaret Hall, to action.

“When one of Australia’s leading conservational scientists says we need to do something to help, well, then you do something,” Margaret said.

Herself a wildlife rescuer and Landcare member, Margaret became project manager for the Top of the Range Glossy Black-Cockatoo Nest Hollow Project” based in the Byron Bay hinterland, working with a group of volunteer local ecologists to protect and support these beautiful, endangered birds to hopefully breed in the wild once again.

Glossy Black-Cockatoos eat from only one food source, Allocasuarina, and need large nest hollows only found in old growth mature Eucalypts, in which to breed.

Sadly, both the food source and breeding trees were lost as a result of the Black Summer fires – and while the Cockatoos new habitat provided them with food, suitable nesting hollows were in short supply.

“It can take up to 200 years for these trees to form hollows large enough for Cockatoos,” Margaret said.

“We knew we needed to get some nest hollows up urgently. They had lots of food, but no nests.”

Enduro Cameras will monitor 24 different nesting hollows across 7 locations. 

Thanks to a grant from the Landcare Led Bushcare Recovery Program, the group have been able to set up 24 hollows using three different types of artificial nest. Each nest has been fitted with either a Swift Enduro 4G or Enduro camera to monitor activity.

Arborists help to install the artificial nesting hollows. 

“Our aim is to cover the next three breeding seasons to see whether we have chosen the right sites, the right trees and the right types of artificial hollows,” Margaret said.

“We need to see which hollow is most appealing.”

The project will by hugely important, as the group believes there have been no successful breeding programs using artificial hollows on the East Coast of Australia thus far.

Along with monitoring the interest their primary targets, the cameras will also monitor the activity of other species, pests such as feral bees and sadly, vandals and poachers.

Margaret said the Swift Enduros had been easy to use and were already providing great results.

“We are absolutely delighted by the quality of the photographs – the night-time pictures were fantastic, along with the day-time ones.”

Backyard scientists and home conservationists are encouraged to keep an eye out for the endangered birds in their area and report any sightings.

Often confused with the larger Yellow-tail Black cockatoos, the first clue is whether you have their food source – Allocasuarina (She-oaks) – in your area.

Some Features to Look for in Glossy Black-Cockatoos:

• Small size … considerably smaller than Yellow-tailed blacks.
• Red or orange-red tail feathers. Males have bright red panels in their tails, while females and juveniles have orange-red panels with varying amounts of black barring.
• Females have variable amounts of yellow on the head and neck.
• Heavy, rounded beak.
• Short tail, clearly shorter than Yellow-tailed blacks when seen in flight.
• Usually seen in pairs or small groups.
• Soft, wavering call in-flight – again, very different to the Yellow-tailed black call.

The Landcare Led Bushfire Recovery project has been supported by the Australian Government’s Bushfire Recovery Program for Wildlife and their Habitat.

Glossy-Black Cockatoo Distribution

These photos were taken by an Enduro 4G Wide-Angle over a 24hr period – day time, sunset and evening.
Click to view full image. 

Photos kindly supplied by Margaret and Peter Hall, Sarah Legge and Locky Cooper.

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