White noise

There’s a grove of large old River Red Gums (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) along Upper King Parrot Creek Road that serves as a night-time roosting spot for a huge mixed flock of Long-billed Corellas and Sulphur-crested Cockatoos. Many of the birds spend the day on the ground in nearby paddocks digging up Onion Grass (Romulea sp) and Flatweed (Hypochaeris sp), leaving the ground looking as if it has been rotary-hoed.

Towards dusk, these birds are often joined by small groups of corellas winging their way down the King Parrot Valley from the direction of Flowerdale. There is much argy-bargy with raucous calls as they settle in for the night, high in the red gum branches. Occasionally something seems to spook them and they take off as one with a deafening screech, wheel around for a while, before once again settling in the trees.
Listen to the audio below to hear this sudden cacophony.

For more on local corellas, click HERE.