The above video clip by Teo Lee Wei & K was filmed at the Botanic Gardens in Sydney, Australia ~ 12 noon. It shows an Australian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen tibicen) dismantling a cicada by shaking and bashing it on the ground to feed on the pieces. This Magpie Crow is mostly a ground feeder, gleaning the surface, turning over the litter or even probing the ground for insects. It even feeds on small vertebrates like frogs, lizards, birds and even mammals.
This is a different subspecies from that eating earthworms in Victor Harbor, Adelaide LINK. The white part on the back is more extensive in the crows at Victor Harbor while there is only a white band around the neck in the crows around Sydney.
Teo Lee Wei & K
Singapore
July 2013
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