Magpie-lark (Peewee)
Grallina cyanoleuca
Other Names: Australian Magpie-Lark, Peewee, Mudlark
Family: Dicruridae (Monarchs, Fantails, Drongo,19 species in Australia)
Size: 27 cm
Distribution: All of Australia except a couple of small parts of central australia and a strip going from the southern WA/SA border up to the northwest WA coast.
Status: Common
Habitat: Open areas, roadsides, often near water.
References: Simpson and Day, Reader's Digest
The name magpie-lark is used in the bird books but everyone in real life calls this bird the peewee. They are in a different family to magpies, currawongs, and butcherbirds, though I often think of them as being a similar type of bird.
The male peewee (pictuerd below) has a black throat and a black face with a white stripe above the eye. The female has a white throat and white around her beak.
Photo: Winmalee, Blue Mountains NSW. High Resolution (1878 x 1323).
Some Birdwatching Resources
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NEW: Field Guide to Australian Birds, by Michael Morcombe. This one has colour drawings of the eggs and the nests which not many other field guides do (I can't think of any that do). It's an excellent field guide and one of the four main ones (the other three being above this one). The weakness of this field guide is that some of the pictures of the birds aren't as good (or accurate) as the other three most used field guides. It's also the heaviest though there is a pocket edition which is much smaller and lighter.
Purchase from Australia (Booktopia)
Purchase from Australia (Angus & Robertson) 
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NEW: Field Guide to Australian Birds: Complete Compact Edition, by Michael Morcombe. Based on the above larger book. It's a while since I've seen this one. The publisher's commentary says that "This slimline, compact edition contains the same information on mainland and Tasmanian birds as his best-selling handbook, the Field Guide to Australian Birds. Features include plastic jacket, QuickFind system of colour tags and Quick Index ensure durability and ease of use in the field."
Purchase from Australia (Booktopia)
Purchase from Australia (Angus & Robertson)
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