The INCA, or LEADBEATER'S COCKATOO (_Cacatua Leadbeateri_), another
species found on the continent of Australia, differs from the bird we
have just described in the arrangement of its colours. Its plumage is
white, but the forehead, sides of the neck, the middle and under surface
of the wings, are of a beautiful rose tint. The crest is magnificent;
the individual feathers of which it is composed are bright red at the
root, spotted with yellow in the middle, and tipped with white. When this
plume is laid back, nothing but the white tips can be seen, but it is no
sooner raised than the blazing red appears, and the yellow spots unite
themselves into a stripe that renders its appearance still more striking.
The spaces around the eyes are light brown; the beak light horn colour;
the foot dark brown. The female is somewhat paler on the lower part of
the body, and has large yellow spots upon the crest.
Gould tells us that these splendid birds are spread over the whole of
South Australia, living principally upon the high gum-trees and brushwood
near the rivers of the interior. They are found principally near the
Darling and Murray rivers, and do not extend as far as the north-western
coast. During the breeding season they appear in great numbers in certain
localities, and animate the otherwise monotonous forests of the interior.
The voice of the Inca cockatoo is more plaintive than that of its
congeners, and its scream not so harsh.