Grey Shrikethrush
Colluricincla harmonica· 啸鹟科(3 photos)
Grey Shrikethrush
22-26 cm. Male: bill black; lores whitish; back olive-brown. Female: bill pale grey on sides; lores greyish; faint white eye-ring; back paler; rufous or blackish streaks on face/throat/breast. In nw. Aust./Top End: larger, browner, incl. bill. Immature: tan eyebrow and/or eye-ring; rufous margins to wing-coverts. Race rufiventris, 'Western Shrike-thrush': pale brownish grey; underparts grey-white, belly/undertail-coverts yellow-buff. Singles, pairs, family parties: forages on branches, trunks, ground/logs. In e. Aust. tame around habitation. Flight undulating.
- Similar Species
- female whistlers, especially Gilbert's.
- Voice
- ringing 'purr-purr, quee yule!', 'pip-pip-pip-ho-ee!', 'ee-all, ee-all, queel'. In winter, ringing 'dite!', 'yorrick!' or 'ching'.
- Habitat
- eucalypt forests/woodlands; coastal scrubs; mallee, mulga, saltbush; watercourses; homesteads, golf courses, parks, gardens.
- Breeding
- July-Feb.
- Nest
- large bowl of bark strips, grass, rootlets; 2-6 m in fork, tree-cavity, grasstree; coppice-growth; vine against house, down-pipe; tin, basket, shed.
- Eggs
- 2-4; white, finely freckled red-brown, blue-grey.
- Range & Status
- Nominate race: widespread se. Aust. to coastal n. Aust. Race rufiventris: c., sc., and w. Aust.; intergrades with nominate in Flinders Ras. (SA), and far w. Q-NT. Race strigata: Tas., Bass Strait islands. Common. Sedentary. Also PNG.
- Distribution key to races
- 1. Colluricincla harmonica brunnea 2. Colluricincla harmonica superciliosa 3. Colluricincla harmonica harmonica 4. Colluricincla harmonica strigata 5. Colluricincla harmonica rufiventris
