An endangered palm cockatoo chick born in an artificial nest in the first world

There is no greater test of a home’s transformation than whether its discerning residents choose to move, stay and raise a family.

On Cape York Peninsula, at the northern tip of Queensland, new tenants are among Australia’s oldest and most endangered birds: the palm cockatoo.

When the first chick was hatched in a hole dug by a team of researchers, conservationists and the Apudthama culture, it brought a rare moment of hope.

“This is big news,” People for Wildlife associate researcher Christina Zdenek said.

“And finally we have.”

Big birds need big trees

The striking birds, with black plumage, dramatic crests and vivid red cheeks, are known for their unusual drumming, using sticks to beat the rhythms of the trees during courtship.

But with fewer than 2,000 birds left in the wild, their survival depends on something less obvious—the right hole.

It can take more than 250 years for the trees to develop holes large enough to accommodate the 60-centimeter-tall birds.

Holes are slowly carved by termites or fungi over several decades, and can only be accessed after a hurricane has ripped through the tree.

Dr Zdenek said: “This is a big bird and what they need is very important.

However, these ancient pits are disappearing due to land clearing and increasing fire.

So far, 29 artificial nests have been installed in carefully selected areas where birds are present but not yet nesting, and three different types have been tested.

A successful cockpit, or so-called “palm cockatube”, was created from an old fallen tree and modified to replicate the natural conditions inside.

Over several months, the researchers observed mature birds entering the same hole to feed and incubate the egg, which they estimated was laid around September – two months after the nest was laid.

Dr Zdenek says he believes design details are important for a successful nest, including different-sized sticks to mimic the shape expected by birds.

Increasing demand for artificial cavities

Matt Stephens, environmentalist and inventor of the Hollowhog woodcarving tool, said artificial hollows are increasingly helping to fill the growing ecological gap left by the loss of mature trees.

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Logging and clearing, as well as changes in fire behavior, have reduced mature trees, resulting in the disappearance of native tree stands.

His work has been successful in re-establishing the population of southern giant gliders in New South Wales, and more recently for rare Tasmanian parrots.

“Now we have the big gliders lifting their joeys, so they’re young, and it’s a very exciting development,” he said.

A plan to live

People for Wildlife conservationist Benjamin Muller was on the ground holding a palm cockatoo chick getting ready to leave.

“The day it fledged, the chick was sitting on top of the hole, ready to go,” Dr Muller said.

“Now we’ve shown that with our method, we can create that critical nesting site for this species and use it across its species.”

He said the group will continue to monitor the burrows, and use cameras and field surveys to detect nesting activity in the future.

There are also plans to create fire pits around the nest trees.

Dr Zdenek said the breakthrough would have implications for the 400 species in Australia that depended on tree hollows for survival.

“Suddenly, it is not ignorance that would send them to perish. It would be lack of effort.”