Pied Currawong — David Taylor - Master Jeweller

The Black Currawong and Pied Currawong look very similar. Both the Black and Pied Currawong have the white wing and tail tips but the Pied is distinguished by the addition of white undertail coverts. The male and female look very similar with the female slightly greyer.

They are a common bird that occupy all of the east coast states of Australia. That said the ashbyl race in Western Victoria is listed as endangered. Size ranges from 420-500mm but the Pied Currawong found in Far North Queensland where I live are at the smaller end of that scale.

The most noticeable feature of the Pied Currawong is the piercing yellow eyes.

Their voice is a distinctive carolling of “curre-wong” and drawn out whistles. Immature birds are grey-brown in colour with eyes yet to turn yellow. They breed from August to January using a shallow nest usually in the outer fork of a eucalypt 7-25 metres high. They lay 2-3 eggs.

They are natively scavengers feeding on insects, nestlings, carrion and berries. That said they also love to scavenge after humans.

They form flocks in winter and disperse to lowlands. They can live in a diverse range of habits such as open forests, woodland scrub, alpine areas, farmland and urban areas.