Pied Butcherbird (female with nest)

Description:

One of my favourite birds. "The nest is a bowl of sticks and twigs, lined with grasses and other finer material. It is usually built in an upright tree fork up to [1]5 m above the ground. [The female constructs the nest and incubates the eggs alone, and is fed by the male and other members of the group.]" (Birdlife Australia) Pied Butcherbirds are "a medium-sized black and white bird. It has a full black hood, dark brown eye and long, hooked, grey and black bill. It has a broad white collar that goes all around its neck and a black bib (throat area). The rest of the underparts are white and the legs are black. The upper parts are mostly black, with large patches of white on the wings and rump. In flight, the white corners of the otherwise black tail are easily seen."

Habitat:

Nest is built approximately 5m high in the fork of this tree at the Waste Water Wetlands.

Notes:

The nest was spotted by my mum and while we kept getting closer, the female was spotted coming back :) The song of these beautiful birds has been described as, "[a combination] of the rich, mellow quality of butcherbirds with the carolling of the Australian Magpie [Gymnorhina tibicen]; its fluted, far-carrying notes seem to reflect the loneliness of its outback haunts." (The Michael Morecombe eGuide to Australian Birds - Mobile App)