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Grey Butcherbird


Grey Butcherbird
Photo Information
Copyright: Richard Cridland (rcrick) Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 627 W: 42 N: 1153] (3730)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2008-07-08
Categories: Birds
Camera: Canon EOS 1D Mark III, Canon EF100-400 F4.5-5.6L IS USM, Hoya 77mm Pro1 DMC UV LPF
Exposure: f/8, 1/60 seconds
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): My Backyard Birds [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2008-07-10 21:41
Viewed: 471
Points: 24
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
The adult Grey Butcherbird has a black crown and face and a grey back, with a thin white collar. The wings are grey, with large areas of white and the underparts are white. The grey and black bill is large, with a small hook at the tip of the upper bill.

The eye is dark brown and the legs and feet are dark grey. Both sexes are similar in plumage, but the females are slightly smaller than the males. Young Grey Butcherbirds resemble adults, but have black areas replaced with olive-brown and a buff wash on the white areas. The bill is completely dark grey and often lacks an obvious hook. They are sometimes mistaken for small kingfishers.

Grey Butcherbirds range from mid-eastern Queensland, through southern Australia, including Tasmania, to northern Western Australia. There is an isolated population in the Kimberley and the northernmost parts of the Northern Territory.

Grey Butcherbirds are found in a range of wooded habitats, including suburban areas. In inland areas, the birds tend to favor the denser forests.
Grey Butcherbirds are aggressive predators. They prey on small animals, including birds, lizards and insects, as well as some fruits and seeds. Uneaten food may be stored in the fork or a branch or impaled. Grey Butcherbirds sit on an open perch searching for prey which, once sighted, they pounce on. Most mobile prey is caught on the ground, though small birds and insects may be caught in flight.

Feeding normally takes place alone, in pairs or in small family groups.

The Grey Butcherbird's nest is bowl-shaped, and is made of sticks and twigs, lined with grasses and other soft fibres. It is normally located within 10 m of the ground. The eggs are incubated by the female and the young birds are fed by both parents. The young birds will remain in the breeding territory for about a year, and help the parents raise the young of the following season.

Details; Shot Raw converted to Jpeg, cropped and re-sized, sharpened slightly for posting.

File Name IMG_0731.JPG
Camera Model Canon EOS-1D Mark III
Shooting Date/Time 8/07/2008 2:03:43 PM
Shooting Mode Aperture-Priority AE
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/60
Av( Aperture Value ) 8.0
Metering Mode Partial Metering
Exposure Compensation +2/3
ISO Speed 250
Lens EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM
Focal Length 400.0 mm
Image Size 708x800
Image Quality Superfine
Flash Off
White Balance Mode Auto
White balance compensation A2 G2
AF Mode AI Servo AF
Picture Style Neutral
Sharpness 5
Contrast 2
Saturation 1
Color tone 1
Color Space sRGB
Long exposure noise reduction 2:Enable
High ISO speed noise reduction 1:Enable
Highlight tone priority 0:Disable
File Size 114 KB
Drive Mode High-speed continuous shooting
mayuresh, Jamesp, Miss_Piggy, siggi, ramthakur, uleko, marhowie, goldyrs, rkailas, fthsm has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

Hello Richard,
This is an excellent shot having wonderful details,superb pose and great sharpness,
very well done,
tfs

  • Great 
  • Jamesp Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1252 W: 0 N: 4842] (14380)
  • [2008-07-10 22:34]

Hi Richard

I have seen these birds but have never got close enough for even a half decent shot. Great close-up with wonderful detail and colour. Well seen and captured.

James

Hallo Richard
This is indeed a black-eyed beauty. A lovely portrait of this sharp edged beak Grey Butcher bird.The black and white of the plumage are displayed well, and is nice and clear and easy on the eye to watch. A very pleasing image presented with great focus and clarity. Thanks for sharing.
Best regards.
Anna

  • Great 
  • siggi Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 286 W: 3 N: 779] (2796)
  • [2008-07-11 1:14]

Hello Richard,
Excellent shot of the Butcher bird. Very sharp and good details of the plumage. .The pOV and DOF are very good. I liked the composition too.
Best regards
Siggi

Hi Rick
Great shot of this guy. Nice work on getting the details in the blacks, the whites and getting the glint in the eye. The light must have been kind for you. Nicely composed and I like the slight tilt of the head.
Cheers
Sue

That curved hook on the upper bill might have earned this bird the name 'Butcher", I guess, Richard.
You have captured this one very well. The focus is immesely sharp, especially on the eye and the bird's white, grey and black colours stand out beautifully.
Overall, it is a well-balanced picture.
TFS and regards.
Ram

  • Great 
  • uleko Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2466 W: 168 N: 7458] (23564)
  • [2008-07-11 6:21]

Hello Rick,
Excellent capture of this fine bird showing very clear details and colours. It stands out very nicely against the light background too.
Well done!
Many thanks, Ulla

Hi Richard,
Great POV and I like the birds pose.
Good exposure of the difficult B&W combo, but you've lost some detail in the birds dark head plummage.
Very good DOF and detail, and composed well with plenty of space around the bird..
Nice work at 1/60th :)
Howard

  • Great 
  • arfer Gold Star Critiquer [C: 2731 W: 0 N: 0] (0)
  • [2008-07-11 22:01]

Hello Richard

Wonderful close up pov.
Excellent eye contact and wonderful plumage detail.
The beak shows well.
Very good lighting and colours.
You have captured it well in a beautiful natural setting.
TFS

Rob

Hi Richard

Excellent portrait and the details and light are perfect. Great capture of the characteristic, curved beak tip. We call these birds of this group "shrikes" in our part of the world.

Thanks for sharing
Ravi

Hello Richard,
Very beautiful photo of this Grey Butcherbird.
The sharpness and details are excellent. Great colours. Very good POV, DOF and composition.
Regards,
Peter

An amazing shot, and the note a revelation about this bird I'd never even heard of!
Very well done, rick!
Goldy

  • Great 
  • fthsm Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 139 W: 50 N: 384] (2310)
  • [2008-07-14 4:51]

Nice detailed picture and I liked the light in this photo. This hook at the end of this beak looks really dangereous :)
TFS,
Fatih

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