Each morning and late afternoon, a flock of cockatoos lands on what passes for a lawn and gorge on seeds, tubers and other tidbits. Until recently, the flocks were made up entirely of long-billed corellas (Cacatua tenuirostris), those slightly disreputable looking birds usually most abundant in pastoral areas. But over the past week or so, they've been joined by a bunch of galahs (C. roseicapillus). The two species feed together without much disagreement. (Although when there is a dispute over ownership of some onion weed, the larger corellas usually win.)
On Monday, the galahs had taken over much of campus. They were on the lawns, in the trees lining the car park and on the mobile phone tower, which they were attempting to dismantle. The galahs took off en masse and zoomed past my office window, only two or three metres away. It was like watching a squadron of Spitfires. (If Spitfires come in grey and pink.)
Birdy num nums
