What does corella mean?
A corella is any of several species of white or pale cockatoo native to Australia, most familiarly the little corella and the long-billed corella. Smaller than the better-known sulphur-crested cockatoo, corellas have shorter crests and patches of bare skin around the eyes and bill. They are highly social birds, gathering in large, noisy flocks that descend on farmland, parks, and watercourses, where they feed on seeds, roots, and bulbs using strong, curved beaks. Their intelligence and playfulness make them popular subjects of birdwatchers and photographers, though farmers sometimes regard them as pests because of the damage flocks can do to crops. The word is used mainly in Australian English, usually in species-specific forms like 'little corella', and appears elsewhere primarily in ornithology and wildlife writing. It should not be confused with the similarly sounding 'corolla', which denotes the petals of a flower.
nounA corella is any of several species of white or pale cockatoo native to Australia, belonging to the genus Cacatua and closely related genera such as Cacatoides, typically having a short crest and bare patches of skin around the eyes.
- Any of several species of small white Australian cockatoo, especially those of the genera Cacatua and Cacatuoides, having a short crest and bare skin around the eyes.
"A flock of little corellas wheeled screeching over the paddock at sunset."
"Long-billed corellas used their powerful beaks to dig up corms in the farmer's field."
"At dusk, the gum trees along the river were alive with the shrieks of feeding corellas."
Standard pluralization applies; flocks are commonly described in terms of numbers of corellas.
"Thousands of corellas gathered on the sports oval after the rain."
Named after an Australian bird whose flocks can number in the tens of thousands, the corella is the raucous, cheeky cousin of the cockatoo — and its name is easily mistaken for the petal of a flower.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of corella
The word 'corella' entered English in the early nineteenth century through Australian sources, adopted from an Aboriginal Australian language of south-eastern Australia; the exact source language and original form are uncertain, so it is safest to describe the origin as indigenous Australian. It belongs to a family of common names for Australian parrots — alongside 'cockatoo', itself borrowed via Malay from Austronesian origins — reflecting European settlers' practice of taking bird names from local languages. Its close resemblance in sound to 'corolla', a Latin botanical term, is coincidental rather than etymological.
How corella is actually used
The word is chiefly used in Australia, where different species are referred to by compound names such as 'little corella' and 'long-billed corella'. It is a straightforward ornithological and common noun, neutral in register, and is pluralized normally as 'corellas'. Outside Australia it appears mostly in nature writing and birding contexts.
Easily confused with corella
The term 'cockatoo' refers to the whole family of crested parrots, while 'corella' names only the smaller white cockatoos of Australia that lack a prominent crest.
'Corolla' is the collective name for the petals of a flower, whereas 'corella' is an Australian cockatoo; the two words merely sound alike.