Bad reception...

Any of you who've been to Australia, NSW will know that the local TV, perhaps national too is err... well... not very good. Programmes flip to ads without warning, ad breaks seem to last forever and the film or whatever just restarts! Local news channels seem to be non-existent and a 10 second weather forecast covering the whole of the country could be regarded as a little 'shallow' in detail. Is there any wonder that the radio/TV media are paranoid about the effect of the internet - it's so much better for anything visual here (it seems to me).

Anyway, it did make me wonder about the reception when I saw five or six of these big birds perched atop a swaying TV ariel! Most flew off but this was the best shot of the remaining two sulphur crested cockatoos.


Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo Bird
The most common of white-coloured Australian cockatoos is the Sulphur-crested Cockatoo (Cacatua galerita), which is found in northern and eastern parts of Australia, including Tasmania. It is one of the noisiest Australian cockatoos. It is a relatively large bird with a white plumage and a fanlike, yellow crest. Its undertail and underwings are pail yellow, and beak and feet are dark. Sulphur-crested Cockatoo lives in rainforest, forest and woodland, but also parklands and gardens in urban areas. It lives in pairs and small groups but can also be seen flying in large flocks in the outback. It mobs predators like birds of prey, large lizards and snakes. Female lays 2-3 eggs in a large tree hollow which are incubated by both sexes during 30 days. It eats mainly seeds, but also fruit, flowers, roots and insect larvae. Good places to see Sulphur-crested Cockatoos are Royal National Park south of Sydney, Mutawintji National Park in New South Wales, and the Grampians in Victoria.



Another shot best viewed large. Taken 0911, Monday November 19th.