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Daniel Garlett with didge and Aboriginal flag

We are privileged to be working on Noongar Boodjar.

We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. This always was, and always will be Aboriginal land.

Flocks of Black Cockatoos used to fill the skies over Perth/Boorloo in Australia’s South West, but now all three species are threatened with extinction. Considered messenger birds by many Noongar people, their absence in the landscape is a message that we are failing to ‘Care for Country.’ Current laws and recovery plans are failing to protect their forest and woodland habitat from clearing, nor do they adequately address key threats, such as shootings, toxic sprays, fire, and vehicle strikes.

Five peak Conservation organizations together with Traditional Custodians are calling on the government for an Emergency Plan to effectively address these issues and save the Black Cockatoos from Extinction.

Red Cockatoo flaring it's tail feathers — Image by Phillipa Beckerling

The Emergency Plan

All three South West Black Cockatoo species are threatened with extinction. Current laws, policies, initiatives, and Recovery Plans are falling well short of what is needed to stop their decline and to protect and recover their populations. We need to take emergency action. A 12-point Emergency Plan has been developed in consultation with scientific experts and Traditional Owners and we are calling on the WA Government to implement it as a matter of urgency.

The Black Cockatoos

Four out of five of Australia’s Black Cockatoo species are under threat, largely due to loss of habitat for nesting sites and food and conflict with human land uses. Three of these species are endemic to the South West of Western Australia; the Karak, the Ngolyenok, and the Ngolak. Read more about them on our Black Cockatoo page.

Take Action

The survival of the Black Cockatoos depends on community action. If we do nothing, all three species could be extinct within twenty years.

The community is rising up to protect these much-loved birds. There are plenty of ways you can take action at home, online and out in the community. Please write to the Premier today and visit our Take Action page to find out more.