Red-tailed Black Cockatoos are a large, glossy black-cockatoo, 55-60cm in size. There are 5 subspecies of Red-tailed Black-cockatoo: C.b.banksii, C.b.graptogyne, C.b.macrorhynchus, C.b.naso & C.b.samueli. These species differ in geographic location, body markings and bill size.
Adult males are sooty black with red panels in tail, the crest is round and helmet-like, and the bill is large, rounded and prominent. Adult females are duller, and spotted/ barred yellow, with a whitish bill and orange-yellow tail with black barring.
Red-tailed Black-cockatoos feed on the seeds of eucalypts, casuarinas and banksias, as well as fruit, nectar, flowers and insects and their larvae.
Red-tailed Black-cockatoos are usually found in pairs, small flocks or large, noisy flocks. During the breeding season, which varies according to geographic location, males will strut across perches with their tails fanned out and their crests up to attract females. Once a pair bond has formed and mated, the female will lay 1, rarely 2, white eggs in a nests made in a tree hole or hollow, usually high up. Females will incubate the egg and the male will bring her food. Both parents will feed the chicks, regurgitating partially digested seeds from their crops. Although chicks fledge the nest at 10-12 weeks old, they can remain with their parents for up to 4 years. Red-tail Black-cockatoos have a lifespan of roughly 20-50 years.
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