Eyre Peninsula cockatoos near extinction
Tuesday, March 27, 2007 at 6:49 
Eyre Peninsula cockatoo threathend by sever droughtThe South Australian Environment Department is on a mission to save Eyre Peninsula yellow-tailed black cockatoos, which are near extinction because of drought conditions.
The birds are at their lowest population level on record and there could be as few as 10 left.
The drought has caused some plants not to flower, which reduces the cockatoos' food supply.
Sarah Way from the Environment Department says the situation is dire.
"This is probably the worst case scenario because we haven't had any major recruitment in several years since the black Tuesday fires in 2005," she said.
"We have been in our nest monitoring, detecting eggs and chicks in the nest, but successful recruitment is when those chicks actually fledge and leave the nest."
Ms Way says people can help by reporting any cockatoo sightings.
"It's something that the whole of the Eyre Peninsula population can be involved in," she said.
"We've got this unique northern migration so the northern farming community on Eyre Peninsula around the Mount Damper and Mount Cooper area provide us with important information about the bird's movement every winter."
Wildlife officers say the species of cockatoo on Eyre Peninsula is unique and plays an important role in the ecosystem.