- Pycnoptilus floccosus
Identification
17–19 cm (6¾-7½ in)
- Reddish-brown overall plumage
- Rufous forehead, breast and undertail coverts
- Scaled appearance to breast and belly
- Red eye
Distribution
Australia: found in south-east New South Wales and south-east Victoria, from the coast to the high mountains.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 2 subspecies[1]:
- P. f. sandlandi: smaller than the nominate with a lighter brown back and pale rather than dark scalloping on the belly
- P. f. floccosus:
- South-east Australia (Brindabella Range, New South Wales to Snowy Mountains, Victoria)
Habitat
Coast and high mountain temperate, wet sclerophyll forests.
Behaviour
Diet
They forage for insects (such as beetles, wasps and ants, seeds and fruit amongst the leaf litter.
Flight
Members of the Acanthizidae family have a characteristic undulating flight path.
Reference
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved August 2016)
- Arthur Grosset
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Pilotbird. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 15 October 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Pilotbird
