Phil alerted me that there was an unusual bird sitting on our clothes line and he had heard a rather special bird call as well. When I looked out the window I could see the bird on the ground eating something. I snuck outside (yes at last I have my camera back) and managed to get a couple of distance shots which I've enlarged.
The bird then flew up into the nearby weeping peppermint tree so I could check what it had been eating. By the look of what was left it was a rat. You can see the long tail and the trace of a head as well.
We get many black and white birds at our place: magpies, mud larks, willy wagtails and of course crows/ravens but it it seldom we receive a visit from a butcher bird. I was glad to see it was only a rat that it was devouring and not another bird. When I went outside a little later there was no sign of the remains.
P.S. We did have a visit from a cuckoo shrike last week but not having the camera I was unable to get its picture but then they tend to be rather shy so I probably would have missed out anyway.
