20 September 2008

Black Cockatoos calling the rain

A bit of heat and Manly Beach was packed with people. For most of the visitors, by now 6 - 8 million p.a. (pdf), it seemed unnoticed, that 3 giant Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoos (Calyptorhynchus funereus) were gliding through the arcade of Norfolk pines. Some of these ancient gigantic Pacific trees (Araucaria heterophylla ) can get up to 57 m tall. Although not endemic to Manly, they fringe the beach and provide a flightpath for the Black Cockatoos going north to the next headland. The tall trees and the giant birds both originated on the Gondwana supercontinent a long time a go. (pdf) The presence of these birds always brings the rain.
> Pines and Birds at Manly Beach

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