? Currawongs
Pied Currawong.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Passeriformes Family: Artamidae Genus: Strepera
Species
Stepera graculina Stepera versicolor Stepera fuliginosa

Currawongs are medium-sized passerine birds of the family Artamidae native to Australasia. There are either three or four species (depending on whether the Australian Magpie is counted as a currawong or not). The common name comes from the call of the familiar Pied Currawong of eastern Australia and is onomatopoeic. my own picture File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria Placozoa Subregnum Bilateria  Acoelomorpha  Orthonectida  Rhombozoa  Myxozoa  Superphylum Deuterostomia     Chordata (vertebrates, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascideiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders Many - see section below. ... Families Many, see text A passerine is a bird of the giant order Passeriformes. ... Subfamilies Artaminae Cracticinae The family Artamidae gathers together 20 species of mostly crow-like birds native to Australasia and nearby areas. ... In biology, a species is, loosely speaking, a group of related organisms that share a more or less distinctive form and are capable of interbreeding. ... Families Many, see text A passerine is a bird of the giant order Passeriformes. ... Subfamilies Artaminae Cracticinae The family Artamidae gathers together 20 species of mostly crow-like birds native to Australasia and nearby areas. ... Australasia is the area that includes Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, and the many smaller islands in the vicinity, most of which are the eastern part of Indonesia. ... Binomial name Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) The Australian Magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) is a medium-sized black and white bird, closely related to the butcherbirds and currawongs. ... The sound of hitting a ball can be described as Whack. In rhetoric, linguistics and poetry, onomatopoeia is a figure of speech that employs a word, or occasionally, a grouping of words, that imitates, echoes, or suggests the object it is describing, such as bang, click, fizz, hush or buzz...

The true currawongs are a little larger than the Australian Magpie, somewhat smaller than most ravens, but broadly similar in appearance. They are not as terrestrial as the Magpie and have shorter legs. They are omnivorous, foraging in foliage, on tree trunks and limbs, and on the ground, taking insects and larvae (often dug out from under the bark of trees), fruit, and the nestlings of other birds. Binomial name Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) The Australian Magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) is a medium-sized black and white bird, closely related to the butcherbirds and currawongs. ... Species See text Many large black birds of the genus Corvus are called ravens. ...

It is sometimes said, with at least some justice, that the home gardener can have either currawongs or small birds, but not both—although part of this perception can be traced to the failure of many gardeners to provide a sufficient number of dense, thorny shrubs as refuges.

All three currawongs are from the south or east of Australia.

• The Pied Currawong (Stepera graculina) is black with white in the wing, undertail covets, the base of the tail and (most visibly) the tip of the tail. Size is about 40 to 50 cm. Along with the Australian Magpie and the butcherbirds, it has one of the most hauntingly beautiful caroling calls of any Australian songbird, and is eclipsed, perhaps, only by the Grey Shrike-thrush and the lyrebirds. It is common in woodland, rural and semi-urban environments throughout eastern Australia, from Cape York to western Victoria.

• The Grey Currawong (Stepera versicolor) has about 6 different races spread right across the southern part of the continent from the Sydney area south and west around the coast and hinterland as far as the fertile south-west corner of Western Australia and the semi-arid country surrounding it. Outlying populations are found on the east coast of Tasmania and, oddly, in the arid area where the Northern Territory meets South Australia and Western Australia. The races vary a great deal: the most common mid to dark grey form and the grey-brown form of South Australia are readily recognised; the darkest races (mostly in Tasmania and parts of sothern Victoria) are difficult to distinguish from the Black and Pied Currawongs at any distance. All Grey Currawongs, however, have a distinctive ringing call and a more sharply pointed, finer bill.

• The Black Currawong (Stepera fuliginosa) is confined to Tasmania and is all black except for a small white patch in the wing and a white-tipped tail. Like all currawongs, it builds a large cup-nest out of sticks, lined with softer material, and placed in a tall tree.

Currawongs are not loved by fruit growers. This Grey Currawong has been feasting on apples and become trapped in a net.

Unlike many birds, the currawongs have suffered little from European occupation of the land: although they are seldom seen in the vast artificial grasslands Europeans have replaced much natural woodland and forest with, scattered patches of remaining bush appear to be sufficient for their needs, and the provision of irrigated waypoints along their rambling migration routes has encouraged them to take up residence in areas where they previously only overflew. The effect of this on smaller birds that are vulnerable to nest predation is controversial: several studies have suggested that Pied Currawongs have become a serious problem, but the truth of this widely held perception remains to be established. Binomial name Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) The Australian Magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) is a medium-sized black and white bird, closely related to the butcherbirds and currawongs. ... Binomial name Colluricincla harmonica (Latham, 1802) The Grey Shrike-thrush (Colluricincla harmonica) is one of the best-loved and most distinctive birds of Australasia. ... Genera Menura A Lyrebird is either of two large ground-dwelling Australian birds, most notable for their extraordinary ability to mimic natural and artificial sounds from their environment. ... Categories: Australia geography stubs | Peninsulas | Headlands ... Motto: Peace and Prosperity Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Governor HE Mr John Landy Premier Steve Bracks (ALP) Area 237,629 km² (6th)  - Land 227,416 km²  - Water 10,213 km² (4. ... Sydney Harbour looking south from the vicinity of the Sydney Harbour Bridge towards the CBD skyline; the Opera House is visible in the background on the left. ... Motto: Cygnis Insignis (Distinguished by its swans) Nickname: Wildflower State Other Australian states and territories Capital Perth Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Ubertas et Fidelitas (Fertility and Faithfulness) Nickname: The Apple Isle Other Australian states and territories Capital Hobart Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: None Nickname: ? Other Australian states and territories Capital Darwin Government Administrator Chief Minister Const. ... Motto: United for the Common Wealth Nickname: Festival State Other Australian states and territories Capital Adelaide Government Governor Premier Const. ... Download high resolution version (799x652, 67 KB)Grey Currawong full-size - my own photo File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Download high resolution version (799x652, 67 KB)Grey Currawong full-size - my own photo File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

Currawongs belong to the subfamily Cracticinae, which also includes the Australian Magpie and the butcherbirds: about 20 species in all. Together with the woodswallows (subfamily Artaminae), they make up the family Artamidae, which, in turn, is allied to the crows and jays, fantails, drongos, and many others. They are Protected in Australia under the National Parks and Wildlife Act, 1974. ... Binomial name Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) The Australian Magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) is a medium-sized black and white bird, closely related to the butcherbirds and currawongs. ... Woodswallows are soft-plumaged, somber-coloured passerine birds found in Australia and the islands nearby. ... Scientific classification or biological classification refers to how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Subfamilies Artaminae Cracticinae The family Artamidae gathers together 20 species of mostly crow-like birds native to Australasia and nearby areas. ... Species See text The true crows are in the genus Corvus; they are large Passerine birds. ... For the Latin alphabet letter, see J. Genera Aphelocoma Cyanocitta Cyanocorax Garrulus Gymnorhinus Perisoreus Jay is a common name for several species of medium sized, usually colorful and noisy passerine or perching birds in the family Corvidae, or crow family, closely allied to the magpies (the names jay and magpie... Fantails are small, insectivorous birds of Australasia belonging to the genus Rhipidura. ... Genera  Chaetorhynchus  Dicrurus The drongos are a subfamily of small passerine birds of the Old World tropics. ...