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Incredibly elusive bird of high-elevation rainforest, confined to a tiny range in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, where it skulks under ground cover in leaf litter.
Endangered
Endemic to Australia
At a glance
FamilyScrub-birds
SizeSmall
RarityUncommon
HabitatClosed forest, Grassland, Irrigated farmland, Open woodland, and Sparse woodland
Best timeMost reliable in New South Wales from October to November.
Sounds
Sound sampleRecorded by Remco Hofland
Range map
Range map
58visible hotspots
1948visible records
3states
SparseModerateDense hotspot
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
Nondescript plumage, mostly brown above, rufous below, with fine black barring extending from upperparts to long, rough tail. Adult male has black throat and breast with white mark from bill to upper breast. More likely to be heard than seen. Male has incredibly loud, diverse song repertoire.
Behavior
It requires dense ground cover and deep leaf-litter in rainforest and wet eucalypt forest, at elevations above 600 m, where it forages on snails and insects on the ground.
Gallery