Chirruping Wedgebill

The chirruping wedgebill is a medium-sized bird, measuring approximately 18–21 cm and weighing 31-64 g. Its bill is dark and wedge-shaped when mature, and horn-coloured when immature. It possesses a slim upright crest, and long rounded tail. Adult plumage consists of pale brown upperparts, with white/pale grey underparts. Flight feathers are edged with white, and the tail is coloured dark black-brown with a white tip. Immature individuals possess similar plumage, the only key differences being buff-tipped flight feathers, unlike the white tips of the mature individual. Voice: The distinctive call of this species is described as an antiphonal duet. Accounts of the call differ slightly. Pizzey and Knight describe the male as calling sitzi-cheeri (similar to the budgerigar's rolling chirrup), while the female replies with an upward rolling r-e-e-e-t CHEER. The call is described by Simpson and Day, however, as "sparrow-like and repetitive".