A project to vegetate a stretch of land from the Blue Mountains to the New South Wales Southern Tablelands to protect the threatened glossy black cockatoo is delivering positive results.

Key points: A project to vegetate a stretch of mainly privately owned land through southern NSW has been widely supported by landholders

A project to vegetate a stretch of mainly privately owned land through southern NSW has been widely supported by landholders Residents are planting trees that provide food for glossy black cockatoos, a threatened species listed as vulnerable in NSW

Residents are planting trees that provide food for glossy black cockatoos, a threatened species listed as vulnerable in NSW The birds grow about 50cm long and can have yellow markings on their head (females) and red on their tails (males)

Southern Highlands landholder Kay Kean was told by rangers she would be lucky to see a glossy black cockatoo on her property.

Most of the time the birds hang out in quiet family groups, nibbling away on the hard nut of she-oak trees.

That was before she realised her place was home to a watering hole that was popular on the glossy black cockatoo social scene.

"We learnt you wouldn't see them much, but then we returned to our property from Sydney and there were 16 drinking around the dam," she said.

"We are very privileged to have this dam … [where] at certain times of the year, they come like clockwork and drink and sit in the trees and make lovely noises."

Ms Kean is now one of many landholders along the Great Western Wildlife Corridor who are champions for the species.

Glossy black cockatoos forage in small family groups and mate for life. ( NSW Office of Environment and Heritage: John Spencer )

It is part of the Glossies in the Mist project that aims to educate and work with landholders who occupy the majority of the wildlife corridor.

The NSW Office of Environment and Heritage has helped provide 12,000 she-oak trees to 400 properties, providing the essential nut the birds eat.

It is designed to provide a rich corridor of habitat for the birds, which are dark brown with red panels on the tail for the males, while the females may have yellow markings on the head.

It is a particularly important time for the birds who are currently in their mating season.

Monogamous, quiet birds that like an afternoon chat

NSW Office of Environment and Heritage threatened species officer Lauren Hook said people were won over by the glossy black cockatoo's personality.

They are the smallest bird in the cockatoo family and are fussy eaters that forage in small family groups.

"They are very quiet compared to their sulphur-crested cousins and they mate for life," she said.

Ms Kean has spent hours observing their behaviour and photographing them as part of data collection for Glossies in the Mist.

"Unlike the white cockatoos, these ones don't trash other things," she said.

"White cockatoos are beautiful but naughty, but these just sit quietly in their trees and to watch them open up the [she-oak] seed and see them eat it relentlessly to get their protein is amazing."

She said in the afternoons, the birds became louder and more talkative.

"They all hang together and talk about what's happening today and what we're doing tomorrow — it's really a privilege to see them and watch them."

Glossy black cockatoos drink at Kay Kean's dam in the Southern Highlands. ( Supplied: Kay Kean )

Project sees landholders take greater interest in wildlife

Ms Kean said she was now trained to look for signs of where the glossy black cockatoos had been living based on remnants of the chewed seed they feed on.

"It's helped us read our land more and made us more observant and aware of what is important and what is not — it makes our land more precious to us."

Ms Hook said the wildlife corridor was benefitting other species too as the only vegetated corridor between Bullio in the southern Blue Mountains down to Canyonleigh near the Morton National Park.

The project has also led to an enormous increase in the reporting of the threatened bird, with 400 sightings now recorded since the project started.

"We're working with lots of different project partners and the community of the Highlands to identify and protect the habitat for glossy black cockatoos.

"It's an important connective corridor and we want the vegetation up the New South Wales coastline to be connected so animals can move up and through these areas.

"It's important to the keep the connectivity between two big wilderness areas."