The grey currawong appears to have declined across its distribution; formerly common, it became scarce in northern Victoria in the 1930s, and in northeastern Victoria in the 1960s. Habitat destruction has seen it decline in southeastern South Australia around Naracoorte and from many areas in the Western Australian Wheatbelt. It also became rare in the Margaret River and Cape Naturaliste regions after 1920, and vanished from much of the Swan Coastal Plain by the 1940s. One place which has seen an increase in numbers is the Mount Lofty Ranges in the 1960s. The species has never been common in the Sydney Basin and sightings have been uncommon and scattered since the time of John Gould in the early 19th century. The status of the species is uncertain in the Northern Territory, where it may be extinct. It has been classified as critically endangered there pending further information.