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Austral Black Bird
Curaeus cuareus

DESCRIPTION:
Austral Blackbird
Tordo Negro Patagónico
Curaeus curaeus
Length: 280mm. Sexes alike. Bill black; iris dark brown; plumage all black with a hint of gloss. Legs black. The female shows feathers faintly margined with brown. Juveniles of both sexes have browner on margins of feathers above and on wings.
Average weight: 110g.
Readily identified by its coloration, size and habits. Habitat and behaviour: common in open woodland, forest edges, mountain slopes covered mostly with Ñire (Nothofagus antarctica) and areas within the ecotone; almost always found in groups, sometimes of 30 or more individuals that forage on the ground in search of seeds, insects and their worms, as well as a wide range of fruit. While the group feeds a sentinel mounts guard on a vantage point and upon danger it utters an alarm call that alerts the flock. Tame by nature, the Austral Blackbird flies over crops, mainly orchards, near human settlements. A superb singer, it sings alone or in groups of two or three individuals perched from topmost branches of trees. It is often heard in winter and its varied notes herald snowstorms. During the warm season it prefers the high mountain and in winter it moves down to the valleys, although there are pairs that remain at various altitudes throughout the year. The nest, quite large in size, is made of straw and mud, and it is built low among the vegetation. Clutch size: up to six pale blue eggs dotted sparsely with dark specks.
Range: Andean and pre-Andean region. From Neuquén to southern Santa Cruz, the race Curaeus c. curaeus; in Tierra del Fuego, the race Curaeus c. reynoldsi.
Illustrated Handbook of the Birds of Patagonia
Kindless: Kovacs Family
 
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Photographs: Mariano Diez Peña


Birding Patagonia • Birdwatcing in Bariloche, Patagonia, Argentina and Chile.
All Rights reserved. Reproduction of photographs is forbidden without permission from the authors.
Photographs on the website: Mariano Diez Peña