Rapturous non-raptor Help?

[Bob Rusk <>]

Hi Jude !
I'm wondering if instead of being a raptor, could it have been a Channel-billed Cuckoo ?  This is a large hawkish looking bird which gives off the call which you've described and the month of November make it a good candidate.
Bob

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From: jude hopwood <>
To: COG <>
Sent: Wednesday, 13 February 2013 7:15 AM
Subject: [canberrabirds] Rapturous non-raptor Help?

Dear All,

I apologise for the broad nature of this sort-of-non-posting, but feel the experience was worth sharing now I have an ID. Is there anyone who could advise if this non-flight flocking behaviour is normal for this bird at that time of year?

At some point in early November, (no date) I stopped at The Pelican, a farm home stay property beside Wakefield Park Raceway on Braidwood Road South of Goulburn, for a closer look at a large-ish raptor perched in a dead tree. I'd parked, picked up the binoculars and found a safe spot to stand and view, by which time the raptor had moved on.  However, I was utterly deafened by rapturous song coming from all over the lambing field (no stock) full of very long grass in front of the stockyards. I scanned for a full 20 minutes but could not see any bird of any sort, although there were clearly very many of them and the songs did not stop, slow down nor cease at all. On reading this month's report by Jack Holland on the Brown Songlark, Horsfield’s Bushlark and the Eurasian Skylark I can say it was not the Brown Songlark, which we used to call the electric bird where we lived near Milthorpe, central NSW, nor the Bushlark, but definitely the Eurasian Skylark, singing on the ground. Perhaps it was just the season. 

Jude