When we lived in Sydney one bird that we saw almost daily, was the Pied Currawaong, Strepera graculina a handsome black bird with a bright golden eye. Their numbers have grown, to become a bit of a problem in the urban and suburban areas. The environment created by people planting exotic plants that have lots of berries, many becoming weeds and putting out feed is the basic cause of the population explosion.
They are omnivorous, so small birds, eggs, lizards and insects are all part of their diet and the growth in numbers is seen as one of the causes of the decline in small birds in the city areas.
I expected that we would see lots of Currawongs here but they are very infrequent visitors, however over the past week we have been visited by a pair, who announce their arrival with their two note call followed by a whistle. Getting a photo has been difficult as they prefer the tree tops where a silhouette against the sky is all that is available.
Today I was in luck as they flew to one of the spotted gums adjacent to our deck and were only in the mid section of the tree.
Their range is right down the east and south east coast and ranges and in the southern areas they overlap with the Grey Currawong.
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