Glossy Blacks - unique and beautiful

Glossy Black Cockatoos hold a special place in the hearts of most cockatoo lovers, mine included. They are so beautiful and unique. Their wild diet consists overwhelmingly of the seeds of casuarina trees. Their reliance on this food source has made them more vulnerable than other species of black cockatoo, as with widespread land clearing suitable habitat has become increasingly fragmented. The recent and continuing bush fire crises has exacerbated this hugely, especially for the southern subspecies, C. l. halmaturinus that now only exists on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, which has suffered extensive destruction by the fires in recent weeks. This disaster will without doubt very heavily impact the population of this subspecies, and only time will tell whether it can overcome this devastating setback.