Grey Butcherbird

The Grey Butcherbird shares the family's hooked bill and largely carnivorous habits, but is distinguished by its grey back and wings rather than solid black, paired with a black mask that runs from the bill through the eye without covering the full head. The underparts are clean white, with a white wing bar visible on the folded wing.

Like its relatives, it has a beautiful, musical voice, and it is a familiar visitor to gardens across much of southern and eastern Australia, sometimes bold enough to approach outdoor dining areas in search of scraps.

Key field marks

• Grey back and wings (not solid black)
• Black mask through the eye, not covering the full head
• White underparts and white wing bar
• Heavy, hooked grey-black bill

Similar species

• Pied Butcherbird: solid black hood over the entire head and throat rather than a partial mask, and a black (not grey) back.
• Grey Currawong and Pied Currawong: much larger, with different bill shape and yellow (not dark) eyes.
• Magpie-lark: smaller, slimmer bill, different black-and-white pattern.

Habitat

Grey Butcherbirds occupy open woodland, scrub, farmland with scattered trees, and gardens, needing open areas for hunting and cover for nesting.

Range

The species is found across southern Australia, from southwestern Western Australia through South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, southern Queensland, and Tasmania.

Migration

Sedentary, with pairs or family groups holding permanent territories year-round.

Behavior

Grey Butcherbirds hunt from perches, swooping to the ground to take prey, which may be wedged into bark or a branch fork to be torn apart, similar to other butcherbirds. They can become quite tame around houses and picnic areas.

Voice

The song is a series of rich, clear, melodious whistles and warbles, often given from a prominent perch, and considered among the more accomplished songs of Australian birds.

Feeding

Diet is largely carnivorous, comprising large insects, small reptiles, small birds and mammals, and carrion, along with occasional fruit.

Nesting and breeding

Nests are loosely built stick bowls placed in tree forks. Clutches typically contain three to five pale eggs with darker markings, incubated mainly by the female, with the male helping to feed her and later the chicks.