birding-aus

Grey Butcherbird and Singing Canary

To: "" <>
Subject: Grey Butcherbird and Singing Canary
From: Michael Hunter <>
Date: Mon, 18 Mar 2019 16:43:24 +1100
     Last summer  a Grey Butcherbird bit off one leg of our Canary after 
squeezing in between the cage and it's protective screen, then  strangled 
trying to get out.
      The Canary kept singing after a week or two, adapted well and now hops 
and flaps around on one foot as if nothing had happened. Stopped singing at the 
end of summer as usual.
      Prior to the amputation I had frequently chased off the Butcherbird 
family which would unsuccessfully attack the cage several times a day.  
(Between attacks the Canary was unconcerned and just kept singing beautifully)
      Two days after the death of the Butcherbird, which looked like an 
immature male, I was  walking in the paddock, well away from the death scene, 
when the rest of the Butcherbird family flew, most unusually, into  an isolated 
nearby tree, looked down at me and commenced a complicated series of calls, 
almost talking, which were totally unfamiliar despite many decades of hearing 
these birds singing and calling.
        This went on for several minutes . The distinct impression was that 
they were accusing me.
         Since then their attacks have virtually ceased, and the one legged 
Canary is secure, waiting for
Spring to sing again.

             Michael 


Sent from my iPhone

> On 18 Mar 2019, at 3:00 am,  wrote:
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> Today's Topics:
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>   1. Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove (Anthea Fleming)
>   2. Re: Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove (Martin Butterfield)
>   3. Re: Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove (David Clark)
>   4. Re: Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove (Philip Veerman)
> 
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> Message: 1
> Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2019 09:51:05 +1100
> From: Anthea Fleming <>
> To: 
> Subject: [Birding-Aus] Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove
> Message-ID: <>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"; Format="flowed"
> 
> At about 7.15 yesterday evening I walked out my  front door. A male Grey 
> Butcherbird flew up from the drive and perched on the fence. I found it 
> had been feeding on a Spotted Dove. The Dove's head was missing and the 
> breast had been eaten. The innards had been eaten out from inside the 
> body cavity, so that it was reduced to wings, 'frame', tail and feet.  
> It was clearly very fresh with blood bright red and still dripping when 
> I inspected the corpse.  The Butcherbird did not return to its prey 
> after I went inside - still undisturbed this morning.
>   Spotted Doves often sit on the ground in our drive and pick grit 
> there. I think a Dove is unusual prey for a Butcherbird, but I have read 
> an account of such a killing made by a Butcherbird diving onto a Dove 
> and striking its neck with its bill. I presume it was eaten in situ 
> because too heavy to carry away.
> 
> Anthea Fleming
> Ivanhoe, Vic.
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> ------------------------------
> 
> Message: 2
> Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2019 11:58:26 +1100
> From: Martin Butterfield <>
> To: Anthea Fleming <>
> Cc: birding-aus NEW <>
> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove
> Message-ID:
>    <CANX9cviZKfK--d1h7Yd6uAihMNVT9cBQKzmFexaOTQYVbz=d=>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
> 
> Can you relocate the Butcherbird to give it a medal?
> 
> Martin Butterfield
> http://franmart.blogspot.com.au/
> 
> 
> On Sun, 17 Mar 2019 at 09:52, Anthea Fleming <>
> wrote:
> 
>> At about 7.15 yesterday evening I walked out my  front door. A male Grey
>> Butcherbird flew up from the drive and perched on the fence. I found it had
>> been feeding on a Spotted Dove. The Dove's head was missing and the breast
>> had been eaten. The innards had been eaten out from inside the body cavity,
>> so that it was reduced to wings, 'frame', tail and feet.  It was clearly
>> very fresh with blood bright red and still dripping when I inspected the
>> corpse.  The Butcherbird did not return to its prey after I went inside -
>> still undisturbed this morning.
>>  Spotted Doves often sit on the ground in our drive and pick grit there.
>> I think a Dove is unusual prey for a Butcherbird, but I have read an
>> account of such a killing made by a Butcherbird diving onto a Dove and
>> striking its neck with its bill. I presume it was eaten in situ because too
>> heavy to carry away.
>> 
>> Anthea Fleming
>> Ivanhoe, Vic.
>> <HR>
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> ------------------------------
> 
> Message: 3
> Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2019 11:23:03 +1100
> From: David Clark <>
> To: Anthea Fleming <>
> Cc: birding-aus <>
> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove
> Message-ID:
>    <>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
> 
> I have watched Grey Butcherbirds kill and eat Spotted Doves and Blackbirds
> when we lived in Box Hill.  It is a gruesome, drawn-out process as the
> Butcherbirds lack the tools to quickly dispatch prey as large as, or larger
> than, themselves.
> 
> Cheers
> 
> David
> 
> On Sun, Mar 17, 2019 at 9:52 AM Anthea Fleming <>
> wrote:
> 
>> At about 7.15 yesterday evening I walked out my  front door. A male Grey
>> Butcherbird flew up from the drive and perched on the fence. I found it had
>> been feeding on a Spotted Dove. The Dove's head was missing and the breast
>> had been eaten. The innards had been eaten out from inside the body cavity,
>> so that it was reduced to wings, 'frame', tail and feet.  It was clearly
>> very fresh with blood bright red and still dripping when I inspected the
>> corpse.  The Butcherbird did not return to its prey after I went inside -
>> still undisturbed this morning.
>>  Spotted Doves often sit on the ground in our drive and pick grit there.
>> I think a Dove is unusual prey for a Butcherbird, but I have read an
>> account of such a killing made by a Butcherbird diving onto a Dove and
>> striking its neck with its bill. I presume it was eaten in situ because too
>> heavy to carry away.
>> 
>> Anthea Fleming
>> Ivanhoe, Vic.
>> <HR>
>> <BR> Birding-Aus mailing list
>> <BR> 
>> <BR> To change settings or unsubscribe visit:
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> ------------------------------
> 
> Message: 4
> Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2019 12:55:00 +1100
> From: "Philip Veerman" <>
> To: "'David Clark'" <>, "'Anthea Fleming'"
>    <>
> Cc: "'birding-aus'" <>
> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove
> Message-ID: <>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
> 
> Yes but sort of surprisingly the process of hawks and eagles is often also a 
> gruesome, drawn-out process, even though they do have the tools to quickly 
> dispatch prey as large as, or larger than, themselves.  There is so much 
> internet film of this, though mostly involving sparrowhawks and goshawks and 
> their relatives in Europe & USA. Quite commonly they will be plucking and 
> eating the still struggling prey.
> 
> 
> 
> Philip
> 
> 
> 
> From: Birding-Aus  On Behalf Of 
> David Clark
> Sent: Sunday, 17 March, 2019 11:23 AM
> To: Anthea Fleming
> Cc: birding-aus
> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Grey Butcherbird kills Spotted Dove
> 
> 
> 
> I have watched Grey Butcherbirds kill and eat Spotted Doves and Blackbirds 
> when we lived in Box Hill.  It is a gruesome, drawn-out process as the 
> Butcherbirds lack the tools to quickly dispatch prey as large as, or larger 
> than, themselves.
> 
> 
> 
> Cheers
> 
> 
> 
> David 
> 
> 
> 
> On Sun, Mar 17, 2019 at 9:52 AM Anthea Fleming <> 
> wrote:
> 
> At about 7.15 yesterday evening I walked out my  front door. A male Grey 
> Butcherbird flew up from the drive and perched on the fence. I found it had 
> been feeding on a Spotted Dove. The Dove's head was missing and the breast 
> had been eaten. The innards had been eaten out from inside the body cavity, 
> so that it was reduced to wings, 'frame', tail and feet.  It was clearly very 
> fresh with blood bright red and still dripping when I inspected the corpse.  
> The Butcherbird did not return to its prey after I went inside - still 
> undisturbed this morning.
>  Spotted Doves often sit on the ground in our drive and pick grit there. I 
> think a Dove is unusual prey for a Butcherbird, but I have read an account of 
> such a killing made by a Butcherbird diving onto a Dove and striking its neck 
> with its bill. I presume it was eaten in situ because too heavy to carry away.
> 
> Anthea Fleming
> Ivanhoe, Vic.
> 
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> End of Birding-Aus Digest, Vol 65, Issue 11
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