Distinctive long-tailed, chestnut-and-black bird with a stark white throat, found only in the western Arnhem Plateau of Northern Territory, in areas with large spinifex clumps around large sandstone boulders.
Vulnerable
Endemic to Australia
At a glance
FamilyFairywrens
SizeTiny
RarityRare
Habitatsparse woodland, open woodland, closed forest, woody trees scattered, and herbaceous graminoids open tussock grasses
Best timeMost reliable in Northern Territory from July.
Sounds
Sound sampleRecorded by Joshua Bergmark
Range map
Range map
25approx hotspots
114approx records
2states
Low confidenceMediumHigh confidence
Aggregated occurance data is sourced from 14 different actively-updating datasets including eBird Australia, iNaturalist Australia, BirdLife Australia, and multiple state-based bird surveys through Atlas of Living Australia.
Species notes
Overview
Frequent burning of these areas has made this species very hard to find, and it is no longer reliably seen in accessible locations.
Behavior
Forages actively on the ground in pairs or small groups, running away into crevices when alarmed.
Gallery
Regional timing
Northern Territory
New South Wales
Commonly confused with
Dusky GrasswrenAmytornis purnelliUsually seen on the ground, scrambling around rocks and spinifex clumps. Much more solidly built than fairywrens, and with fine white streaks on head and chest.→Purple-backed FairywrenMalurus assimilisSmall pale tips are sometimes visible on the tail. Over much of the species’s inland range, females are overall grayish birds with pale fronts and long blue tails; however, females of the subspecies found in the sandstone regions of the Kimberley and Arnhem Land have contrasting blue crowns and backs. This species occurs over much of arid inland Australia and is found in open vegetation.→Superb FairywrenMalurus cyaneusBreeding males have a pale blue crown, cheek, and back with a strong black line from the bill through the eyes and around the back of the head. Nonbreeding males are fairly plain grayish-brown birds with black bills and bright blue tails. Females have a duller blue tail and a reddish bill. Note that the patch between the eye and bill (lores) on females is a reddish color of about the same tone as the bill (in Variegated and Purple-backed Fairywrens the lores are much darker than the bill). Female Superb Fairywrens have a much cooler and grayer plumage than the warm tones of Red-backed Fairywren. This species is abundant in parks, gardens, and open woodlands around much of southeastern Australia.→