Southern Emu-wren
Stipiturus malachurus
The Southern Emu-wren (Stipiturus malachurus) is a uncommon grasswrens, fairywrens, and emu-wren found only in Australia, weighing about 7 g. The southern emu-wren is a species of bird in the Australasian wren family, Maluridae.
About the Southern Emu-wren
The southern emu-wren is a species of bird in the Australasian wren family, Maluridae. It is endemic to Australia. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, and Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, and swamplands.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The adult male has rusty-brown upper parts with streaks of black, the crown more reddish and grey-brown wings. It has a sky-blue throat, upper chest and eyebrow. The tail is double the body length, and is composed of six filamentous feathers, the central two of which are longer than the lateral ones. The underparts are pale red-brown, paler on the belly. The bill is black and the feet and eyes are brown. The female is darker streaked and lacks the blue plumage and redder crown. Its bill is brown with a pale grey base.
Where it lives
When to see it
The Southern Emu-wren can be seen all year round, with peak activity in October. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Southern Emu-wren?
- The adult male has rusty-brown upper parts with streaks of black, the crown more reddish and grey-brown wings. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Southern Emu-wren?
- The Southern Emu-wren is a tiny sized bird weighing about 7 g.
- Where can you see a Southern Emu-wren?
- The Southern Emu-wren is endemic to Australia, which is the only country where it occurs.
- What birds look similar to a Southern Emu-wren?
- The Southern Emu-wren is most easily confused with the Mallee Emu-wren and the Rufous-crowned Emu-wren.
- Is the Southern Emu-wren endangered?
- The Southern Emu-wren is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Southern Emu-wren for real
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