The Indian Mynas

Their ancestors were brought to Australia from places far away
From foreign parts Calcutta and Delhi and Bombay
Familiar birds with a familiar call
The Indian Mynas known to one and all.

C.J.Dennis one of Australia's finer poets
About these birds one of his best poems wrote
He told of how the mynas lilt and play
And swagger down the sidewalks all the day.

Some people say the mynas are a pest
That they claim nest sites where some native birds nest
But in their coming to Australia they had no choice
And for man's mistake some natives pay the price.

On power lines, garden trees and fence and gate
They sing their songs all day till evening late
And at dawn of day to their notes I awake
You hear them once their voice you can't mistake.

Their ancestors brought from places far away
From distant towns Calcutta and Bombay
But Indian mynas no longer aliens here
As they've been around for many, many a year.

They sing their songs come hail rain or sunshine
These Asian mynas favourite birds of mine
You hear them once you know their voice again
Their distinct notes the memory retain.