Gray Butcherbird
Cracticus torquatus
Medium-sized ambush-hunter with a long gray bill with a dark, hooked tip. Black head and face with a white nape and throat. Upperparts dark gray, with white rump, mostly black wings (limited white), and black tail with narrow white tip. Rollicking, chuckling song.
Identification
The grey butcherbird is a small grey, black and white bird with a weight of 90 grams (3.2 oz), a body length between 27 and 30 cm (10.6–11.8 in) and a wing span expanding 37–43 cm (14.6–16.9 in). The grey butcherbird is smaller than the Pied Butcherbird (Cracticus nigrogularis).<p>The adult grey butcherbird has a black head, top and sides; and a white chin and throat through to the lower hindneck. The upperbody is mostly dark grey with streaks of narrow white bands that extends across the uppertail-coverts at the base of the tail. The uppertail is black with narrow white tips. The wings are grey with large areas of white and the underside of the wing is also white. The tip of the beak has a slight downwards hook.<p>Both the male and female grey butcherbirds are similar in appearance, but the female is slightly smaller in size.<p>The juvenile is slightly different from the adult, as the juvenile does not have a black head, instead the head is a dark brown with fine streaks on the forehead and ear-covers and white loral spots that meet the eyes and bill, as well as having an off-white chin and throat. The upperbody is dark brown with streaks, and the uppertail-coverts are also a dark brown and have a brownish colour at the base of the uppertail. Juvenile's beaks are completely dark grey and often the hook at the tip of the beak is not obvious. The juvenile grey butcherbird is commonly mistaken for a small kingfisher.
Taxonomy
The grey butcherbird was first described by the English ornithologist John Latham in 1801 under the binomial name Lanius torquatus.<p>Closely related species include the silver-backed butcherbird (Cracticus argenteus) and the black-backed butcherbird (Cracticus mentalis). The silver-backed butcherbird (Cracticus argenteus) from Arnhem Land and northwestern Australia over to Port Hedland, originally described by John Gould in 1841, was later deemed to be a subspecies of the grey butcherbird. Recently, however, it has again been re-described as a separate species. The silver-backed butcherbird has two subspecies C. argenteus argenteus and C. a. colletti. The black-backed butcherbird occurs in Australia on the Cape York Peninsula and in Papua New Guinea and has two subspecies.<p>The grey butcherbird has three subspecies:
- Scientific name
- Cracticus torquatus
- Authority
- (Latham, 1801)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Artamidae
- Genus
- Cracticus
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- unknown
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Poikilocarbo gaimardi
Attractive coastal cormorant; locally fairly common in Humboldt Current. Often seen perched on jetties, inshore rocks, and cliffs associating readily with Guanay Cormorant, pelicans, boobies, and Inca Terns. Mainly feeds in small groups or as scattered individuals, not in huge dense rafts like Guanay Cormorant. Note distinctive big white neck patch, pale scalloping on upperparts, brightly colored bill, and red legs. Immature has more muted pattern than adult.
Ash-throated Flycatcher
Myiarchus cinerascens
Fairly large flycatcher of arid habitats. Extremely similar to other Myiarchus flycatchers and most easily identified by voice: listen for low, rough calls and flat “pip.” Also note overall pale appearance, especially the whitish throat and very pale yellow belly. Compare with the nearly identical Nutting’s Flycatcher (especially in Mexico) and larger-billed Brown-crested Flycatcher. Fairly common but unobtrusive in brushy woodlands and thickets in dry regions of western U.S. and Mexico, as far south as Honduras.
Long-tailed Jaeger
Stercorarius longicaudus
Slender gull-like seabird; the smallest of the three jaegers. Breeds on Arctic tundra; spends the rest of the year at sea. Difficult to separate from other jaegers, especially Parasitic. Breeding adults have an exceptionally long, pointed tail. Also note uniform brownish back contrasting with dark flight feathers, limited clean black cap, and pale yellow on the side of the neck. Immature birds have an attractive scaly pattern on wings and vary from dark brown to a pale grayish white. At all ages, note buoyant, tern-like flight. Typically shows white shafts only on two outermost wing feathers (fewer than other jaegers). Bill is shorter and proportionally thicker than other jaegers. Jaegers chase other birds and steal their food.
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