Pachycephala rufiventris

Size: Birds Size: 17 cm

Family: Pachycephalidae (Whistlers, Shrike-thrushes and allies, 14 species in Australia).

Distribution: Almost all of Australia except TAS and small areas in central and central-West Australia.

Status: Common

Habitat: Mostly open forest, woodland, mallee and scrub of arid interior, less common in wetter tall forests. Nomadic or migratory in parts of Australia.

References: Simpson and Day, Reader's Digest

About the Rufous Whistler

The Rufous Whistler is a lovely bird, the male has striking colours, with a thick black stripe arouns his head, and a pure white throat underneath. The belly of the bird is a rufous (reddish-brown) colour, with darker wings and a mid-brown on top of the bird. The female is more of a brown colour overall though she does have a lighter (but not pure white) throat, and a slightly reddish belly (but not nearly as coloured as the male).

They are very similar to the Golden Whistler, which has a very bright yellow colour instead of the rufous colour.

They are usually seen in native bushland, not so much in people's gardens. This is perhaps more true of the Rufous Whistler than Golden Whistler, which is seen in my own garden (which backs onto bush and has a large gum tree in it ) now and then.

Photo: Lawson, Blue Mountains NSW

Photo: Lawson, Blue Mountains NSW

See Also

Australian Mammals
Australian Reptiles
Australian Frogs
Australian Fish
Australian Spiders and Their Faces
Australian Wild Plant Foods

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