- Malurus melanocephalus
Identification
10–12·5 cm (4-5 in). One of the smallest fairy-wrens.
The male is black with a bright red back and dusky primaries
The female is a very plain light brown, with a brown bill.
Distribution
Australia. The scarlet-backed form can be found in the eastern coastal areas from the middle of Queensland south to central New South Wales. The crimson-backed form are from northern Western Australia through the coastal areas of the Northern Territory to North Queensland.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 2 subspecies[1]:
- M. m. cruentatus: Crimson-backed
- North Australia (northern Western Australia to Cape York Peninsula)
- M. m. melanocephalus: Scarlet-backed
- East Australia (Burdekin River, Queensland to Hunter River, New South Wales)
Habitat
Tropical and sub-tropical woodlands, near water.
Behaviour
Diet
Their diet consists mostly of insects, particularly ants, beetles, cockroaches, caterpillars and grasshoppers.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Rowley, I. and E. Russell (2020). Red-backed Fairywren (Malurus melanocephalus), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.rebfai1.01
- The Slater Field Guide to Australian Birds
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Red-backed Fairywren. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Red-backed_Fairywren
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
