Sulphur Crested Cockatoo
The sulphur crested cockatoo is not only beautiful, but it is very intelligent and has fascinating personality traits -- it is "a bird that must have a sense of humour." For example, you may see it hanging onto a telephone wire while attempting to spin in circles, or making a mess by throwing its food all around, or biting your toes!
Many of the cockatoos have gotten used to humans, and you can hand feed them. If you're lucky, you might end up with one on your shoulder. Some people say that this might not be safe -- they might bite your ear like Mike Tyson, so be careful. But having one on your shoulder is an amazing experience. For those who have never had a bird land on them, realise that birds have claws that they use to dig into the trees to hold on. Birds usually do not understand the difference between you and a tree: it does not feel comfortable when they dig into you. Large birds such as the cockatoo have very large and powerful claws: If they dug into you, it would be very painful. The sulphur crested cockatoo is a bird that understands this, and is relatively gentle when it lands on you. If you ever go to a bird show, you may notice that the handlers of the birds will wear a glove when holding a large bird, but they will take it off when they hold the sulphur crested cockatoo. Indeed, it is smarter than the average bird!
Cockatoos are extremely noisy, particularly when flying in large groups. Some pet cockatoos can learn to talk.
![[sulphur crested cockatoo: click for larger image]](big/cockatoo1747.jpg)
![[sulphur crested cockatoo: click for larger image]](big/cockatoo0526.jpg)