Everything you need to know about South Australia’s new cockatoo experience

Everything you need to know about South Australia’s new cockatoo experience



There’s a new up-close cock­a­too expe­ri­ence at Cle­land Wildlife Park. Here’s all you need to know.


An immer­sive cock­a­too expe­ri­ence is wait­ing for you and it’s only a 20-minute dri­ve from Adelaide’s CBD, at Cle­land Wildlife Park.

It’s a great oppor­tu­ni­ty for bird and ani­mal lovers to inter­act with some of South Australia’s threat­ened cock­a­too species. 

Avail­able dai­ly at 11am and 2.15pm, the cock­a­too expe­ri­ence lets you get up-close with the black, white and pink cock­a­toos that are found in Australia. 

How up-close will I get?

You’ll spend about 20 min­utes in a large walk­through aviary, with an expert cock­a­too keep­er and six of Cle­land Wildlife Park’s res­i­dent cockatoos. 

Under the super­vi­sion of the expe­ri­enced keep­er, the birds may fly and land on you – even spend­ing time on your arms and shoul­ders – while you feed them treats. Cute!

Everything you need to know about South Australia’s new cockatoo experience

Top tip: Don’t for­get your phone or cam­era. Your cock­a­too keep­er will be hap­py to take lots of pho­tos. We know that the sul­phur-crest­ed cock­a­too named Lem­my loves a self­ie or two. 

Which cock­a­too species will I get up-close with?

The aviary hous­es four dif­fer­ent species of cock­a­too – the sul­phur-crest­ed cock­a­too, vul­ner­a­ble yel­low-tailed black cock­a­too, endan­gered red-tailed black cock­a­too and the rare Major Mitchell cockatoo. 

So in just one encounter you’ll get up-close with half of South Australia’s eight species of cock­a­too.

Everything you need to know about South Australia’s new cockatoo experience

Where do these cock­a­toos come from?

Cleland’s res­i­dent cock­a­toos have either been res­cued or hand-raised, and have an affin­i­ty towards humans. 

What will I learn at the cock­a­too experience?

Your cock­a­too keep­er will fill your knowl­edge-bank with some fun facts about the dif­fer­ent res­i­dent cock­a­toos, includ­ing their behav­iours, life span and con­ser­va­tion status. 

You’ll also learn how you can help pro­tect these mag­nif­i­cent par­rots in the wild. 

Everything you need to know about South Australia’s new cockatoo experience

How do I book a cock­a­too experience?

Book­ings are essen­tial, but can only be made on-the-day at the Cle­land Wildlife Park tick­et office. 

The expe­ri­ence costs $15 per per­son, on top of your entry fee to Cle­land Wildlife Park.

By par­tic­i­pat­ing in this expe­ri­ence you are help­ing save these beau­ti­ful birds. For every cock­a­too expe­ri­ence tick­et sold, Cle­land Wildlife Park vol­un­teers will prop­a­gate and plant a spe­cif­ic cock­a­too habi­tat plant to help con­serve wild populations.

To find out more vis­it the Cle­land Wildlife Park web­site.

Love birds? Read about some of thetiny birdsyou might see in South Aus­tralia and thebirds of preythat call our state home, or find outwhat species has cre­at­ed its nestin your backyard.


This con­tent was pro­duced in part­ner­ship with  Good Living