The elegant artist of the outback. With soft pink feathers and a glorious red, yellow, and white crest, Major Mitchell’s Cockatoo is widely considered one of Australia’s most beautiful birds. But beauty comes with a price — they’re more sensitive and solitary than other cockatoos and have suffered due to land clearing and loss of nesting sites. Listed as vulnerable in parts of Australia, they rely on old-growth trees with deep hollows to breed successfully. They’re known for their mournful whistles and strong pair bonds, and once you’ve seen that candy-coloured crest fan out — it’s hard to forget.