Scientific Name: Cacatua pastinator pastinator
Other Name: Western Long-billed Corella
Conservation Status: Vulnerable
Weight: 560-815 g
Length: 43–48 cm
Incubation: 26–29 days
Number of Eggs: 1–3

Distribution: Small area around Lake Muir district, south-west Western Australia
Habitat: Eucalypt woodland

Description: The Muir’s Corella is white with a small patch of pink feathers between the bill and the eyes. It has a ring of bare blue skin around its eyes.

Diet: Muir’s Corellas are herbivores. They eat the stems, tubers and seeds of native plants.

In the wild: Muir’s Corellas form large flocks for feeding and roosting. They use regular flight paths and return often to good feeding sites. During summer, flocks feed in the early morning and late afternoon. In winter, they spend the entire day feeding.

Threats: The Muir’s Corella used to be widespread throughout south Western Australia but now they have a very restricted range. In the past, Muir’s Corellas were often poisoned and shot as they ate agricultural crops. It is now illegal to kill Muir’s Corellas and the main threat is now habitat loss. They require hollows to nest in, which are only found in trees that are at least 70-years-old.

At Perth Zoo: The world’s first captive bred Muir’s Corella hatched at Perth Zoo in 2007. Two adult Muir’s Corellas can be viewed at the Western Australian Cockatoo Exhibit in the Australian Bushwalk.

Did you know? Some farmers have problems with Muir’s Corellas which feed on crops. The Department of Environment and Conservation’s website at www.dec.wa.gov.au has strategies on how to live with Muir’s Corellas.