> The Lord Howe Island Currawongs are regarded as a separate subspecies
> _Strepera graculina crissalis_. Their voices, loud and mostly
> melodious,
> while clearly recognisable as Currawong are noticeably different from
> mainland Currawong voices.
>
I spent my short holiday over Xmas-New Year in Gariwerd (the Grampians)
National Park in western Victoria, and Daylesford-Hepburn Springs
(Australia's Spa Capital!!) in central Victoria. One thing that struck
me was the extreme variation between regional dialects of Pied
Currawongs in those two places, compared with the ones around my home in
Geelong, southern Victoria. Some birds in the far west of Gariwerd made
a few calls that sounded remotely like Black Currawongs (Tasmanian
endemic). Pied Currawong dialects seem quite extreme, and even allowing
that I have not heard the Lord Howe one, I suspect it would be no more
remarkable than the variations of the mainland population - any
comments??
Lawrie Conole
2/45 Virginia Street
Newtown 3220 Victoria
AUSTRALIA
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