I wonder if anyone can help me identify a group (3) very large black birds I saw while on a cycleway in the Newcastle area today. They had white patches over sort of "ear" area, had very long tails which from underneath were black with a horizontal white strip down the centre. They appeared to be one larger one one slightly smaller and another juevenile one
that was calling out although they were all on the one tree.
The only pictures I can find remotely like them are the white tailed black cockatoo but everything tells me they are only in WA. Don't know much about birds but these had me intrigued and disappeared before I had a chance to photograph. Thanks for any information.
Hi Mardge. Did they look like cockatoos? Were the markings definitely white? Sometimes the Yellow-tailed cockatoos yellow markings can look like they have white markings when enough light is shining on them at certain angles. I don't know if this could be the case. :)
Hi Elle, they definitely looked like cockatoos, have recently seen black red-tailed and yellow-tailed ones in Launceston Zoo and these looked similar but definitely white markings and I made a mistake saying horizontal strip of white in tail feathers should have said from body to end of tail should have said vertical. I was just fascinated by them and not sure if the young one was whining for food or worried about being blown out of the big red spotted gum as it was gusting winds at the time. Thanks for the reply anyway!