Umbrella Cockatoo

1 Umbrella Cockatoo Breed Overview

The name of the Umbrella Cockatoo comes from its crest that opens like an umbrella, and it is precisely because of this feature that it has attracted a lot of attention. In addition, because the Umbrella Cockatoo is almost entirely white, it is also often called the White Cockatoo. The Umbrella Cockatoo is a talking parrot, but not the kind that is eloquent; it can only say relatively simple words.

Actually, there are quite a few people who keep Umbrella Cockatoos; they are generally friendly to people but sometimes a bit noisy, so if you like quiet you may want to carefully consider whether to keep an Umbrella Cockatoo.

Like many birds, the number of Umbrella Cockatoos has greatly decreased under excessive hunting and habitat destruction. It is said that in Indonesia, some residents eat Umbrella Cockatoos, so they are listed as a Vulnerable species.

Chinese Name: Umbrella Cockatoo

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Aves

Subclass: Neornithes

Order: Psittaciformes

Family: Cacatuidae

Tribe: Cacatuini

Species: Umbrella Cockatoo

2 Umbrella Cockatoo Physical Characteristics

Do you know which cockatoo has the largest crest? That’s right, the Umbrella Cockatoo. The Umbrella Cockatoo is also called the Umbrella Palm Cockatoo, Great White Cockatoo, etc. Whether from the scientific name or aliases, we can see some of its physical features—for example, it is called the Umbrella Cockatoo because its crest opens like a raised umbrella, and because its body is mainly white, people also call it the White Cockatoo.

The Umbrella Cockatoo is not small; generally its body length can reach nearly 50 cm. If caged, the size of the cage is the first thing the owner must consider. Although called the White Cockatoo or Great White Cockatoo, they are not all white; the underside of the Umbrella Cockatoo’s wings and tail feathers have a bit of light yellow, which you may not see from behind but can clearly see from the front.

Umbrella Cockatoo Physical Feature Description

Body length: about 45 cm.

Weight: about 550 g.

Color: mainly white, with light yellow under the wings and on the tail feathers.

Beak: gray.

Iris: differs by sex; the male iris is dark brown, the female iris is deep red-brown.

Feet: gray.

3 Umbrella Cockatoo Living Environment

Umbrella Cockatoos usually do not appear alone; they like to move in groups, generally about a dozen. The Umbrella Cockatoo comes from Indonesia; if you want to see wild Umbrella Cockatoos, you may need to travel to Southeast Asia, as they mainly live in tropical rainforests, swamps, hilly forests, etc.

Although Umbrella Cockatoos do not appear in high-altitude areas, they like to stand on taller trees. Because their body color is white and they basically gather in groups (sometimes you may even find more than 50 Umbrella Cockatoos together), they are easily spotted. If accidentally startled, Umbrella Cockatoos will quickly fly away.

If kept artificially, the owner must prepare a larger birdcage, because the Umbrella Cockatoo is not a small one. In addition, Umbrella Cockatoos love to chew, so the cage the owner prepares needs to be metal, and the owner should also prepare some chewable toys for them. Some keepers have reported that Umbrella Cockatoos can learn to open the cage themselves, so to avoid the bird opening the cage door and flying out, the owner can add a lock to the cage.

4 Umbrella Cockatoo Care Tips

Although the Umbrella Cockatoo is beautiful and many people fall for it at first sight, to keep them the owner cannot act on impulse; keeping them means taking on an extra responsibility. To keep the Umbrella Cockatoo well without lowering your quality of life, the owner must know its care points.

5 Umbrella Cockatoo Feeding Guidelines

The Umbrella Cockatoo is a bird from Indonesia. Because of being kept by humans, you may see them in many other places. White feathers and a large crest are the two great tools that attract people’s attention; some people decide to keep one after seeing this cockatoo at first sight. But before keeping an Umbrella Cockatoo, you must understand their living habits and keeping methods, otherwise various problems may arise later. To let the Umbrella Cockatoo grow healthily, how to feed it becomes something owners need to learn.

Wild Umbrella Cockatoos stay in trees for a long time each day, so their food is generally found in trees, such as nuts and fruits; in addition, they also eat insects and their larvae. If you want to keep an Umbrella Cockatoo yourself, you need to prepare some other foods.

First, you can see if there is suitable feed for home birds on the market; if so, buy some to see if the bird likes to eat it. To ensure the Umbrella Cockatoo gets comprehensive nutrition, you should also appropriately give the bird vitamins and minerals, etc. Some birds may stop liking a feed after eating one kind for a long time; the owner needs to change food according to the actual situation.

In fact, as long as you do your homework in advance, the owner can avoid many problems caused by diet. When the Umbrella Cockatoo has a diet problem, the owner should find the cause in the first instance and solve it promptly.