Pied Butcherbirds
Pied
Butcherbirds
According
to my Simpson and Day Field Guide to the Birds of Australia 8th
edition, Pied Butcherbirds should not live down here in NSW; but it seems to me
that they actually do. Why? Because I can SEE them here and have taken photos
of them, and I have NEVER been to QLD. Using other sources (the Internet) I can
see that other people also say the Pied Butcherbird lives around here.
The
Adult birds are black and white, while younger birds are brown and white. They look
similar to the Magpie Lark and Grey Butcherbird, but can be told apart. A
Magpie Lark has a white band running down the side of its face and neck, not a
complete hood like the Pied Butcherbirds do, they are also smaller. And the Grey
Butcherbird does not have a black “bib” (throat).
The
Pied Butcherbird eats; insects, frogs, small mammals, reptiles and bits of
bread and stuff we throw out the window for them and the other birds. Sometimes
the family (up to about 10 birds) will hunt together, other times they hunt unaccompanied.
I often see them hopping around on the grass occasionally darting their beaks
at some unknown creature.
They
breed only once a year, somewhere between August and December. The dominant
female builds a nest, which she and sometimes the other females lay their eggs
in. She sits while the “teenage” birds (last year’s babies) and other family members
bring food for her. After hatching, the young birds stay in the nest for about
four weeks.
The Pied Butcherbird has a very pretty call, which
is also very hard to describe, my field guide says it is a, “Lovely, flute like
warbling”.
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