Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!crdgw1!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!rutgers!att!cbnewsj!duane
From: duane@cbnewsj.att.com (duane.galensky)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: Indoor Antics
Message-ID: <1990Jul19.144321.5978@cbnewsj.att.com>
Date: 19 Jul 90 14:43:21 GMT
References: <332@spam.ua.oz> <674@mtune.ATT.COM> <339@spam.ua.oz>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 57

>In article <674@mtune.ATT.COM> kac@mtune.ATT.COM (Kathleen Cavanagh) writes:
>	These are not all Australian, of course, but all cockcatoos
>	seem to come from this part of the world rather than South
>	America, for example.
>
>	In particular we have no "umbrella" cockatoo known by that
>	name, but if it is the one I think it is, it comes from
>	Indonesia.  I don't know what "mullacans" are either, unless
>	they are the cockatoos from the Moluccas, in which case they
>	are also Indonesian. We do have a Sulphur Crested Cockatoo
>	(I'm not sure if it's the greater or the lesser) and Galahs -
>	they're *really* Australian!
>
>	In fact Galahs and Corellas (two other kinds of large raucous
>	white cockatoo) are often agricultural pests in Oz and there
>	is a debate whether the farmers should not be given permits to
>	catch and export them rather than permits to poison and shoot
>	them, as sometimes happens now.  It's an emotional issue.
>
>	It's curious how the "white" group of cockatoos, and galahs,
>	are such common caged birds, whereas the much more impressive
>	(to my mind at least) "black" group (Red-tailed,
>	Yellow-tailed, White-tailed, Casuarina, Gang-gang, Palm, ...)
>	are virtually unknown in captivity.  Any flock of cockatoos in
>	the wild is something to see, but to see a large flock of
>	red-tailed black cockatoos is a real privilege.
>
>	BTW I understand that some taxonomists regard cockatiels as
>	rather junior members of the "white" group of cockatoos.
>

the cockatoo commonly referred to as "umbrella" is actually
cacatua alba (white cockatoo) which inhabits several small
islands north of the australian continent, and not the contintent
proper.   it would make perfect sense that the "salmon crested"
or mollucan cockatoo comes from the moluccas...

black cockatoos are not commonly kept as caged birds for several
reasons.  their relative rarity makes them highly prized, however
as a rule they don't fare well in captivity.  the 'casaurina'
has a highly specialized diet (hence the nickname).  palms
are perhaps the most magnificent of all, but like all black cockatoos
their needs and disposition can't be handled by the average domestic
bird owner.  

why CITES prohibits the export of birds only to have them shot or
poisoned is quite an isssue indeed.  the theory is that if the
export of galahs etc. is permitted, the smuggler will have a much
easier time getting away with leadbeaters etc. which are endangered
and command astronomical prices on the black market.  the
down side is that prices for birds which are as common as pigeons
and twice as pesty in australia run in the $3000 range in the US...
in this part of the world, a galah is rare indeed!  it's a tough
issue, and we can only hope for a sensible resolution that
benefits the common and rare species alike.

so