Goffin's Cockatoo
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| Goffin's Cockatoo | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Cacatua goffiniana (Finsch, 1863) |
The Goffin's Cockatoo, Cacatua goffiniana, also known as Tanimbar Cockatoo, is a species of cockatoo endemic to forests of the Banda Sea islands in Indonesia. They weigh, on average, about 250 grams for females and 300 grams for males. They are about 31 centimeters -12" from head to tail. The Goffin's Cockatoos are the smallest of all the cockatoos. It is a white cockatoo with some salmon or pink face feathers, and a pale grey beak. Both sexes are similar.
Like all members of the Cacatuidae, the Goffin's Cockatoo is crested, meaning it has a collection of feathers on its head that it can raise or lower. Its body is mainly covered with white feathers, with salmon or pink colored feathers between the beak and eyes. The deeper (proximal) parts of the crest feathers and neck feathers are also a salmon color, but the coloration here is hidden by the white color of the more superficial (distal) areas of these feathers. The underside of its wing and tail feathers exhibit a yellowish tinge. The eyes range from brown to black. They are often confused with the Little Corella due to their similar appearance.
Due to ongoing habitat loss on Tanimbar, limited range and illegal hunting, the Goffin's Cockatoo is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The species is listed on Appendix I of CITES. In the 1970s, Japanese loggers ravaged the islands. Many of the dazed, disoriented, birds were captured for the pet trade. Although, many were lost in the stresses of shipment, there may be a small silver lining behind this ecological disaster, because many Goffin's Cockatoos have been reproduced in captive breeding programs. As such, there are now more Goffin Cockatoos in captivity than in the wild.
[edit] Gallery
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[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Cacatua goffiniana. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 5 November 2006. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is near threatened
