Galah

The **galah** (/ɡəˈlɑː/; *Eolophus roseicapilla*), also known as the **pink and grey cockatoo**, is one of the most common and widespread cockatoos and it can be found in open country in almost all parts of mainland Australia.

It is endemic on the mainland and was introduced to Tasmania, where its distinctive pink and grey plumage and its bold and loud behavior make it a familiar sight in the bush and increasingly in urban areas. It appears to have benefited from the change in the landscape since European colonisation and may be replacing the Major Mitchell's cockatoo in parts of its range. The term galah is derived from *gilaa*, a word found in Yuwaalaraay and neighbouring Aboriginal languages.

## Description

Galahs are about 35 cm (14 in) long and weigh 270–350 g (10–12 oz). They have a pale silver to mid-grey back, a pale grey rump, a pink face and chest, and a light pink mobile crest. They have a bone-coloured beak, and the bare skin of the eye rings is carunculated. They have grey legs. The sexes appear similar; however, generally adult birds differ in the colour of the irises; the male has very dark brown (almost black) irises and the female has mid-brown or red irises. The colours of the juveniles are duller than the adults. Juveniles have greyish chests, crowns, and crests, and they have brown irises and whitish bare eye rings, which are not carunculated.

## Classification

The classification of the galah was difficult. It was separated in the monotypic genus *Eolophus*, but the further relationships were not clear. Obvious morphological similarities are shared between the galah and the white cockatoos that make up the genus *Cacatua* and indeed the galah was initially described as *Cacatua roseicapilla*. Early DNA studies allied the galah with the cockatiel or placed it close to some *Cacatua* species of completely different appearance. In consequence, the ancestors of the galah, the cockatiel and Major Mitchell's cockatoo were thought to have diverged from the main white cockatoo line at some stage prior to that group's main radiation; this was indeed correct except for the placement of the cockatiel. Ignorance of this fact, however, led to attempts to resolve the evolutionary history and prehistoric biogeography of the cockatoos, which ultimately proved fruitless because they were based on invalid assumptions to start with.

It fell to the study of Brown & Toft (1999) to compare the previously available data with their mitochondrial 12S rRNA sequence research and resolve the issue. Today, the galah is seen, along with Major Mitchell's cockatoo, as an early divergence from the white cockatoo lineage, which has not completely lost its ability to produce an overall pink (Major Mitchell's) or pink and grey (galah) body plumage, while already being light in colour and non-sexually dimorphic. The significance of these two (and other) characteristics shared by the Cacatuinae had previously been explained away in earlier studies by strict application of parsimony on misinterpreted data.

## Habits and Lifestyle

A highly sociable bird, the Galah is often seen in huge flocks that number as many as 1,000 individuals. They tend to feed in either the morning or late afternoon. They often mix with other species of cockatoo. In hot weather, flocks spend much of their time sheltering among shrubs and trees. They are often seen in acrobatic postures, sometimes hanging upside down, holding on by one foot only, flapping their wings and giving a loud “scree!” At dusk, they perform further acrobatics before roosting. They fly swiftly through the treetops, twisting and turning as they swoop towards the ground, screeching as they go.

## Diet

A wild **galah's** natural **diet** is varied, consisting of several foods that will vary seasonally and depend upon location, mostly consisting of seeds, oats, wheat and several grasses. **Galahs** also dig in the dirt or grass for insects, larvae and shallow plant roots.

## Mating Habits

Galahs are monogamous birds and pairs mate for life. Males display to females by strutting towards them, with bobbing and waving of the head and raising of their crest, giving soft calls and also clicking their bill. The breeding season in the north is from February to July, and in the south from July to December. Galahs nest in tree hollows or in cavities in cliffs. Often many pairs nest close to each other. Females lay between 2 and 5 white eggs, and incubation lasts around 4 weeks, shared by the parents. The chicks are fed at the nest by their parents for 5 to 6 weeks. They then leave the nest to gather in a “crèche tree”, along with other young birds. For 2 to 3 more weeks they are still fed by their parents. Then the parents fly away to molt. The young are independent by between 6 and 8 weeks old. Young birds join large nomadic flocks with non-breeding birds until they are 2 to 3 years old. They are ready to breed when they are four years old.