Black Palm Cockatoos

Another notable characteristic of these rare specimens is that they have no feathers on the lower portion of their legs. This is considered to be an adaptation to their nesting behavior. They nest deep in the hollowed out cavities of trees, stacking branches and twigs in the bottom to allow for the drainage of rain water away from their eggs. I have heard conflicting stories about the egg laying behavior of these birds. Many say that in the wild they only lay one egg at a time. Others say that they lay one egg and about the time that it is due to hatch another is laid. It is presumed that this behavior is mother nature's safety valve. If the first egg were not to hatch the second one would then be cared for. If the first egg does hatch and the chick survives the second chick will be ignored and left to die. The second opinion has been supported by the captive breeders that I have talked to. Palm Cockatoos are so rare in aviculture that more often than not the eggs are incubated and are usually laid in 28 to 30 day intervals. In captive breeding many baby Palms die at an early age. The exact dietary needs of these neonates is still speculation. Some breeders such as Avicultural Breeding and Research Center in Loxahatchee, Fl. have been more successful than others. Nine palms have been raised at the Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia S.C..

Captive Palms

In my experiences Palm Cockatoos not only look different than other cockatoos but are a totally different bird when it comes to personality. They have a pleasant mixture of the playfulness of macaws and the socialization of the other cockatoos. They don't seem to require the constant attention demanded by the Mollucans and the Umbrella cockatoos. They are very capable of keeping themselves entertained with a few simple toys. Although surely able they are not constant chewers. I have heard of Palms chewing through chain link fence but I very rarely find where ours have been at work on any thing other than their toys. I have never had one chew a perch out of a cage as almost all of my other species of birds do regularly.

The call of the Palm is indescribable so I won't even attempt to describe it, but I can tell you that it is very pleasant and doesn't sound much like any other parrot. They are considerably better talkers than most other cockatoos although nothing in comparison to some of the other species of parrots. They are very playful and energetic. The male shown in this picture is the one I spoke of earlier that beats on things with and throws his rawhide toys. He hops across tile floors like a wind up toy as if he likes to hear the sounds that his nails make when contacting the floor. He also will take his beak and knock on a closed door. Kashmir, the female on the previous page loves to dance to the right music. She will stand on the perch thrusting her head forward and back almost to the rhythm of the music while stamping her feet on the perch. She will then take her beak in the same manor as the male knocking on the door and begin to beat out a rhythm on the perch. She seems to prefer jazz and light rock.

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