Chestnut-rumped Heathwren
Hylacola pyrrhopygia
Small bird of dense heath and shrubland in southeastern Australia. Pale brown above, whitish below, with distinct pale supercilium, red-brown rump, small white patch at the base of primaries, fine dark chest streaking, and long, cocked tail. Forages quietly on the ground or in thick vegetation, where difficult to see. Compare Shy Heathwren, which has a white wing spot, more black in wing, and darker legs.
Identification
The chestnut-rumped heathwren is a small bushland bird with an olive-brown back with conspicuous reddish-brown rump and tail coverts. It has a streaked brown-on-white chest and the belly and rear flanks are grey-buff. There is a dark subterminal band with a white tip on the usually erect tail. Both sexes have a dull white eyebrow; eyes are yellow, while bill, legs, and feet are grey. There are only small differences between the subspecies that are not easily recognised in the field. It measures 14 cm (5.5 in) in length.
Taxonomy
The chestnut-rumped heathwren was first described by the Irish zoologist Nicholas Aylward Vigors and the American physician and naturalist Thomas Horsfield in 1827. The generic name Hylacola derives from the Greek hylē 'woodland' and the Latin -cola 'dweller'. The specific epithet pyrrhopygia derives from Greek pyrrhos 'flame-coloured, red' and pyge 'rump'. It is also known colloquially as the scrub warbler.There are three subspecies: Hylacola pyrrhopygia pyrrhopygia in New South Wales and Victoria; H. p. parkeri in the Mt Lofty Ranges of South Australia; and H. p. pedleri in the southern Flinders Ranges of South Australia.
- Scientific name
- Hylacola pyrrhopygia
- Authority
- (Vigors & Horsfield, 1827)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Acanthizidae
- Genus
- Hylacola
Range and habitat
The chestnut-rumped heathwren occurs in southeastern Australia from the Granite Belt of southeast Queensland through eastern New South Wales, Victoria, and southeast South Australia. In Victoria, it ranges inland to the Grampians and Bendigo region, but is more usual in coastal parts. In New South Wales, it occurs inland as far as the Warrumbungles and Temora. Scattered populations occur in the Flinders and Mt Lofty Ranges, and the Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia. Its preferred habitats are heaths of coastal, mountain and hinterland areas, and the dense undergrowth of forests and woodland. It is sedentary and uncommon within its range.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
Although the population of chestnut heathwrens is declining, the species is currently classified as Least Concern by the IUCN. However, it is listed as Endangered in South Australia and Vulnerable in Victoria, with continued fragmentation and loss of habitat, and predation by introduced predators, being regarded as the main pressures.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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