Birds · Psittaciformes · Cacatuidae

Cockatiel

Nymphicus hollandicus

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The cockatiel — known in Spanish as cacatúa ninfa, cocotilla or simply ninfa — is a psittaciform bird of the cockatoo family and the only species in the genus Nymphicus. It is endemic to Australia and one of the most commonly kept pet birds, second in popularity only to the budgerigar, as well as being the smallest cockatoo species in the world.

Weight

80 g – 100 g

Size

30 cm – 33 cm

Lifespan

20 years

Diet

Herbivore

Feeds mainly on plants.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

In pairs

Usually lives in pairs, sometimes for life.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

SavannaDesertGrasslandHerbivore Diurnal In pairs Bird Savanna Desert Grassland

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Fun facts

Its crest is an emotional thermometer: fully raised it means alertness or curiosity, tilted back it means relaxation, and flattened against the skull it means fear or aggression.
It is a cockatoo, the smallest of them all, although whether it belonged to that family was long debated: genetic analyses place it as the only species in a subfamily of its own.
It is the males that learn to whistle tunes: in the wild it is they who sing to court, and that capacity for vocal learning carries over into captivity.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
Habitat & environment: Open scrub, savanna woodland and wetland margins of the Australian interior
Birth weight: Altricial: born blind, naked or with sparse down and entirely dependent
Size at birth: Altricial: born blind, naked or with sparse down and entirely dependent
Sexual maturity: 15 months
Gestation / incubation: 20 days of incubation
Litter / clutch size: 5 eggs