Pied Currawong

Strepera graculina

Family: Artamidae (Woodswallows, Butcherbirds, Currawongs, 15 species in Australia)
Size: 41-51 cm
Distribution: Southeast Australia within a few hundred km from the coast.
Status: Locally Abundant to Common
Habitat: Open and low open forest, woodland, scrub, agricultural and urban land
References: Simpson and Day, Reader's Digest

The Pied Currawong is one of the most commonly seen and heard birds in the areas where it lives. It is sometimes mistaken for the Australian Magpie, which is closely related (it is in the same family and subfamily) .However the Currawong is larger, has less white markings on it, and it does not attack people. It also has a yellow eye while the Magpie has a red eye.

Also unlike the Magpie, Pied Currawongs sometimes gather in huge "Currawong Parties", where as many as 100 birds will hang out together, making loud "wheeeeeeew wheeeeeee-EEEEEE-w" noises as well as theis usual call which (if you have a good imagination) sounds a bit like the word "currawong".

There is a different species, the Grey Currawong, which is similar but grey in colour rather than black.

Pied Currawong - Strepera graculina
Photo: Wentworth Falls, Blue Mountains NSW

Pied Currawong - Strepera graculina
Artwork: John Gould, 'The Birds of Australia', 1848. Original Scanned Image.

Some Birdwatching Resources

NEW: The Australian Bird Guide, by Peter Menkhorst (Author), Danny Rogers (Author), Rohan Clarke (Author), Jeff Davies (Illustrator), Peter Marsack (Illustrator), Kim Franklin (Illustrator).

Revised Edition 2019. Original edition published 2017. This is a newer Australian bird field guide that I just got recently. It may be the best one out of all of them now. Though I still like the pictures better in "Simpson and Day" in terms of their artistic value, and that they just look more interesting to me than the drawings in any other bird field guide I've seen. This one has more "clinical" looking pictures. They are coloured artist-rendered drawings, not photographs. Though the more "clinical" look is meant to be more anatomically accurate, and better for identification.

The rest of the book is wonderful, with different coloured regions on the range maps, and very high quality information overall. It was the winner in its category for an Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) award for book of the year in 2018.

Purchase from Australia (Booktopia)

Purchase from Australia (Angus & Robertson)

Purchase from Australia (The Nile)

Purchase from Australia (Fishpond)

Purchase from Amazon.com (USA Site)

Purchase from Amazon.com.au (Australian Site)

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