Strepera versicolor
Silhouette: Michael Scroggie · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
The grey currawong (Strepera versicolor) is a large passerine bird native to southern Australia, including Tasmania. One of three currawong species in the genus Strepera, it is closely related to the butcherbirds and Australian magpie of the family Artamidae. It is a large crow-like bird, around 48 cm (19 in) long on average; with yellow irises, a heavy bill, dark plumage with white undertail and wing patches. The male and female are similar in appearance. Six subspecies are recognised and are distinguished by overall plumage colour, which ranges from slate-grey for the nominate from New South Wales and eastern Victoria and subspecies plumbea from Western Australia, to sooty black for the clinking currawong of Tasmania and subspecies halmaturina from Kangaroo Island. All grey currawongs have a loud distinctive ringing or clinking call.
Within its range, the grey currawong is generally sedentary, although it is a winter visitor in the southeastern corner of Australia. Comparatively little studied, much of its behaviour and habits is poorly known. Omnivorous, it has a diet that includes a variety of berries, invertebrates, and small vertebrates. The habitat includes all kinds of forested areas as well as scrubland in drier parts of the country. It is less arboreal than the pied currawong, spending more time foraging on the ground. It builds nests high in trees, which has limited the study of its breeding habits. Unlike its more common relative, it has adapted poorly to human impact and has declined in much of its range, although not considered endangered. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flinders Chase | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Wilsons Promontory National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Hattah-Kulkyne National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Great Otway National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Grampians National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Kosciuszko National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Freycinet National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Maria Island National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Grey Currawong sighting in Melbourne on a given day, based on 1,743 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 79th most-seen of the 236 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March–August, October and December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Grey Currawong in Melbourne on a given day, against under 5% in January–February, September and November, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Grey Currawong sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 3
Of the 3 cities where we can rate Grey Currawong sightings, Melbourne ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Hobart (Australia, about 30%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Grey Currawong is recorded against all the birds logged in Melbourne (1,743 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
