Butcherbirds in the wild get conjunctivitis quite often. In most cases the disease does not heal, causing the bird to go blind with tragic consequences. Unable to see, the bird can't find enough food and starves to death or flies into object injuring itself only to fall prey to predators or eventually starvation. read more »
Each year we've been blessed with our friendship with Maggie and his family and friends, there has been a different emphasis. Nothing has been the same two years in a row. This year, making sure we don't lose contact with grey butcherbird Larry, his family and friends, has been the big challenge. Previously, he had the territory over the road, and the pied butcherbirds Butch and family had the territory behind our house. (The two species have a single territory map, and don't share land.) Although Butch and gang don't want Larry to come, the situation worked out okay. read more »
We've had a very interesting week watching (and participating) in the relationships amongst our butcherbirds. On the back side of the house we have our original pied butcherbird family, Butch and Cass and two of their adult children. Along the road is a new pied butcherbird group of five or six, two of whom are two older kids of Butch and Cass, namely Teddy and Tommy, who, I am quite convinced once saved Gitie's life by warning her of a nearby highly venomous snake, and chasing it out of our yard. read more »
Over the past few weeks our various baby birds have been gaining confidence and getting to know us better. At first when they come, they follow their parents around for food, then they try a bit for themselves, picking it up off the grass experimentally. (They have surprising difficulty when very young picking up their own food, even though they have already become accomplished fliers.) read more »
Fresh back from a Christmas trip to India, we were keen to see how our birds' new offspring had managed to pull through. read more »