Cracticus nigrogularis
The Pied Butcherbird is a medium-sized black and white bird (33cm - 37cm). It has a full black hood, dark brown eye and long, hooked, grey and black bill. It has a broad white collar that goes all around its neck and a black bib (throat area). The rest of the underparts are white and the legs are black. The upper parts are mostly black, with large patches of white on the wings and rump. In flight, the white corners of the otherwise black tail are easily seen. Both sexes have identical plumage, but the male is slightly larger than the female. The Pied Butcherbird's voice is a beautiful, melodious fluting, sometimes given in turn by several individuals. Many people consider this the best singer of Australia's birds.
Young Pied Butcherbirds are generally duller than the adults are. The areas of black are replaced with brown and white areas are washed with buff. The birds also have an ill-defined bib, which becomes more distinct with age.
The Pied Butcherbird is larger and more boldly marked than the Grey Butcherbird, C. torquatus, and can be separated from the Black-backed Butcherbird, C. mentalis, of Cape York Peninsula, Queensland, which lacks a black bib. It can be distinguished from other black and white birds, such as the Australian Magpie, Gymnorhina tibicen, and the Magpie-lark, Grallina cyanoleuca, by the black head and bib separated from the black back by a complete white collar, and white underparts. The bill is much larger than that of the Magpie-lark.
The Pied Butcherbird inhabits drier forests and woodlands and often approaches parks and houses. It is more often heard than seen, as it sings from a prominent perch. Its distribution extends throughout the Australian mainland, with the exception of most of the southern and south-eastern coastline, and the more arid areas of the inland. It is absent from Tasmania.
Butcherbirds are aggressive feeders. Pied Butcherbirds prey on small reptiles, mammals, frogs and birds, as well as large insects. Most food is caught on the ground. The birds sit on an exposed perch and swoop down on their prey. Hunting groups may consist of several birds from a large group, which may comprise three or four adults and several young birds, but birds may also hunt alone or in pairs. Butcherbirds get their name from their habit of hanging captured prey on a hook or in a tree fork, or crevice. This 'larder' is used to support the victim while it is being eaten, to store several victims or to attract mates.
The breeding season of the Pied Butcherbird varies throughout its large range. In the north, the usual season is May to November, and August to November in the south. The female constructs the nest and incubates the eggs alone, and is fed by the male and other members of the group. The nest is a bowl of sticks and twigs, lined with grasses and other finer material. It is usually built in an upright tree fork up to 5 m above the ground. The three to five eggs hatch after 21 days and the young birds leave the nest after a further 29 to 32 days. More than one female may lay eggs in the same nest.
Copyright © Australian Museum, 2003
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