Difference between revisions of "Galah" - BirdForum Opus

Latest revision as of 13:57, 7 July 2023

Alternative Names: Rose-breasted Cockatoo, particularly in aviculture

Photo © by Mehd Halaouate
Canberra, Australia, 12 May 2005

Eolophus roseicapilla

Cacatua roseicapilla

Identification

Juvenile
Photo © by Nora
Toolern Vale, Victoria, 1 August 2013

35–36 cm (13¾-14¼ in)
An unmistakable cockatoo with a rose pink head, breast and underparts, and a grey back, wings and tail. The short crest is white to pink depending on subspecies.
The sexes are similar, however can be distinguished on eye colour, or eye colour and eye ring (depending on the subspecies). Females have a red iris/red iris and red eye ring, while males have a grey eye ring and dark brown iris.

Distribution

The species is widespread over Australia, to which it is endemic. It is absent only from the most arid zones of the continent, and the far north of Cape York. Their distribution appears to have greatly expanded since European settlement, as it has benefited from the planting of crops and the provision of stock watering points in dry areas.

Taxonomy

It has historically been placed in genus Cacatua.

Subspecies

Photo © by Eric J Taylor
Mannum waterfall, South Australia, 15 August 2009

Earlier works incorrectly attributed eastern birds to the nominate race with the matter only recently resolved by Schodde et al. (2016)^[5]. Three subspecies are recognized^[1]:

E. r. kuhli:

Northern Australia (Northern Territory)

E. r. roseicapilla:

Western and west-central Australia

E. r. albiceps: East-central and eastern Australia south to Tasmania

Habitat

Open woodland, riverine woodland, agricultural districts and human settlements.

Behaviour

Actions

Flocks typically twist and turn with powerful wingbeats showing alternate pink and gray.

Diet

They usually forage on the ground, eating seeds and rhizomes of pasture grasses and herbs. Also cereal grains, sunflower and sorghum seed. When nesting they prefer green seeding Erodium. Occasionally forage in trees.

Breeding

Monogamous with pairs remaining together year-round. They nest in tree cavities, laying clutches of 2-8 white eggs. Large clutches may be the result of two females laying in the same nest. Both parents incubate the eggs and raise the chicks.

Vocalisation

A distinctive high pitched call described as “chill chill” is given in flight.

Movements

Breeding birds mostly resident, but some birds form large nomadic flocks. Some seasonal movement away from arid areas during seasonal rain.

References

Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Higgins, P.J. (ed.) 1999. Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic birds. Vol. 4, parrots to dollarbirds. Oxford University Press, Melbourne.
Juniper, T. & Parr, M. (1998) Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World. Yale Univ. Press, New Haven and London.
Rowley, I. & Boesman, P. (2019). Galah (Eolophus roseicapilla). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/54414 on 29 December 2019).
Schodde, R., Black, A. B., and Fornasiero, J. (2016). East or west: to which subspecies does the type specimen of the Galah, Eolophus roseicapilla (Vieillot, 1817) (Aves: Cacatuidae), belong? Zootaxa 4067, 489–493.
Styche, A. 2013. Galah. In Miskelly, C.M. (ed.) New Zealand Birds Online. www.nzbirdsonline.org.nz

List of references

Recommended Citation

BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Galah. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 10 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Galah

External Links

Search for photos of Galah in the gallery

GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-;Eolophus roseicapilla
+'''Alternative Names: Rose-breasted Cockatoo''', particularly in aviculture
-[[Image:Galah.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by mehdhalaouate <br>Photographed:  Canberra, Australia]]
+[[Image:Galah.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo &copy; by {{user|mehdhalaouate|Mehd Halaouate}} <br />Canberra, [[Australia]], 12 May 2005]]
-Australian endemic.  Put into genus Eolophus (monospecific).
+;[[: Category:Eolophus|Eolophus]] roseicapilla
+''Cacatua roseicapilla''
 ==Identification==
-The Galah (35cm) is an unmistakable cockatoo with a rose pink head, breast and underparts, and a grey back, wings and tail. The short crest is white. The sexes are similar, however can be distinguished on eye colour, or eye colour and eye ring (depending on the subspecies). Females have a red iris/red iris and red eye ring, while males have a grey eye ring and dark brown iris.
+[[Image:Galah- Cacatua-roseicapilla -N-tvc-1-8-13.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Juvenile<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|Nora|Nora}}<br />Toolern Vale, [[Victoria]], 1 August 2013]]
+–36 cm (13¾-14¼ in)<br />
+An unmistakable cockatoo with a rose pink head, breast and underparts, and a grey back, wings and tail. The short crest is white to pink depending on subspecies.<br />
+The sexes are similar, however can be distinguished on eye colour, or eye colour and eye ring (depending on the subspecies). Females have a red iris/red iris and red eye ring, while males have a grey eye ring and dark brown iris.
 ==Distribution==
-The species is widespread over Australia, to which it is endemic. It is absent only from the most arid zones of the continent, and the far north of Cape York. Their distribution appears to have greatly expanded since European settlement, as it has benefited from the planting of crops and the provision of stock watering points in dry areas.
+The species is widespread over [[Australia]], to which it is endemic. It is absent only from the most arid zones of the continent, and the far north of Cape York. Their distribution appears to have greatly expanded since European settlement, as it has benefited from the planting of crops and the provision of stock watering points in dry areas.
 ==Taxonomy==
-Galahs are members of the cockatoo family Cacatuidae within the order Psittaciformes. There has been some controversy over their taxonomy, however they are generally placed in the monotypic genus Eolophus, and thought to be, with the Major Mitchell Cockatoo, an early divergence from the white cockatoo lineage.
+It has historically been placed in genus ''[[:Category:Cacatua|Cacatua]]''.
+====Subspecies====
+[[Image:Mannum2009 0815 1 0001a.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Photo &copy; by {{user|The+Bosun|Eric J Taylor}}<br />Mannum waterfall, [[South Australia]], 15 August 2009]]
+Earlier works incorrectly attributed eastern birds to the nominate race with the matter only recently resolved by Schodde ''et al.'' (2016)<sup>[[#References|[5]]]</sup>. Three subspecies are recognized<sup>[[#References|[1]]]</sup>:
+*''E. r. kuhli'':
+:*Northern [[Australia]] ([[Northern Territory]])
+*''E. r. roseicapilla'':
+:*Western and west-central Australia
+*''E. r. albiceps'': East-central and eastern Australia south to [[Tasmania]]
 ==Habitat==
@@ Line 16: / Line 28: @@
 ==Behaviour==
+====Actions====
+Flocks typically twist and turn with powerful wingbeats showing alternate pink and gray.
+====Diet====
+They usually forage on the ground, eating seeds and rhizomes of pasture grasses and herbs. Also cereal grains, sunflower and sorghum seed.  When nesting they prefer green seeding ''Erodium.'' Occasionally forage in trees.
+====Breeding====
+Monogamous with pairs remaining together year-round. They nest in tree cavities, laying clutches of 2-8 white eggs. Large clutches may be the result of two females laying in the same nest. Both parents incubate the eggs and raise the chicks.
+====Vocalisation====
+A distinctive high pitched call described as “''chill chill''” is given in flight.
+====Movements====
+Breeding birds mostly resident, but some birds form large nomadic flocks.  Some seasonal movement away from arid areas during seasonal rain.
+==References==
+#{{Ref-Clements6thAug19}}#Higgins, P.J. (ed.) 1999. Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic birds. Vol. 4, parrots to dollarbirds. Oxford University Press, Melbourne.
+#Juniper, T. & Parr, M. (1998) Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World. Yale Univ. Press, New Haven and London.
+#Rowley, I. & Boesman, P. (2019). Galah (''Eolophus roseicapilla''). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/54414 on 29 December 2019).
+#Schodde, R., Black, A. B., and Fornasiero, J. (2016). East or west: to which subspecies does the type specimen of the Galah, ''Eolophus roseicapilla'' (Vieillot, 1817) (Aves: Cacatuidae), belong? Zootaxa 4067, 489–493.
+#Styche, A. 2013. Galah. In Miskelly, C.M. (ed.) New Zealand Birds Online. [http://nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/galah www.nzbirdsonline.org.nz]
+{{ref}}
 ==External Links==
-{{GSearch|Cacatua+roseicapilla}}
+{{GSearch|"Eolophus roseicapilla" {{!}} Cacatua roseicapilla" {{!}} "Eolophus roseicapillus" {{!}} "Galah" {{!}} "Rose-breasted Cockatoo"}}
-*[http://www.aviceda.org/abid/birdimages.php?action=birdspecies&fid=19&bid=144 View more images of this species on the ABID]
+{{GS-checked}}1
-[[Category:Birds]]
+<br />
+<br />
+[[Category:Birds]][[Category:Eolophus]]