Australian Fairy-Wrens (Maluridae)

(Maluridae)

Class: Aves

Order: Passeriformes

Suborder: Passeri (Oscines)

Family: Maluridae

Thumbnail description
Small insectivores with long cocked tails; females and young are cryptically colored but breeding-plumage males have gaudy plumage

Size
5.5–8.6in (14–22cm); 0.27–1.2oz (7.6–34.1g)

Number of genera, species
6 genera; 30 species

Habitat
Shrubbery and undergrowth in arid woodlands and forests, though some inhabit rainforests and many species thrive in suburbs, parks, and gardens

Conservation status
No species are currently Endangered but many have localized distributions threatened by habitat loss

Distribution
Found throughout Australia and New Guinea, and associated islands

Evolution and systematics

Fairy-wrens are a distinct and divergent group of passerines, characterized by long, sometimes filamentous, tails, usually with 10 retrices. They are often subdivided into two subfamilies: grasswrens (Amytornithinae) and fairy-wrens (Malurinae), although recent DNA studies are incomplete and details of relationships among species and species groups are still problematic.

Physical characteristics

Grasswrens are cryptically colored shades of tan and brown with black-and-white markings, while fairy-wrens have breeding-plumaged males with bright blues, violets, purples, and russets; some species feature cheek patches of brilliant turquoise that can be extended to form a face fan during agonistic or nuptial displays. Long, cocked tails are displayed while moving and are characteristic of this family. Emu-wrens have long, filamentous tails, and like the other fairy-wrens are dimorphic in plumage. Grasswrens are nearly monomorphic in plumage, with subtle shades distinguishing the sexes: females are usually more russet below.

Distribution

Fairy-wrens are found throughout Australia and New Guinea. Some species have very restricted ranges, while others are distributed continent-wide. Emu-wrens and grasswrens are confined to Australia, while fairy-wrens are found in New Guinea as well. The monotypic genera Sipodotus and Clytomyias are confined to New Guinea and outlying islands.

Habitat

Grasswrens tend to be birds of spinifex and porcupine grass of the arid interior, and have very limited geographic distribution, reflecting perhaps relic populations isolated by increasingly arid conditions, eventually evolving to become separate species. The emu-wrens occupy a variety of habitats, with the southern emu-wren found in swampy heath and plains thickets of southern Australian coastal belts, while the other two species occupy the arid interior. The fairy-wrens occupy a range of habitats, including tropical grasslands, wet forests and woodlands, and the semi-arid interior. Several species have adapted well to humans and grace the parks and gardens of suburbia.

Behavior

Most malurids are found in family groups and tend to be territorial and sedentary, communicating among group members with a broad spectrum of melodious calls. They are busy foragers, climbing through dense undergrowth and hopping with cocked tails across open patches of ground.

Feeding ecology and diet

Most malurids are ground foragers, gleaning and pecking a wide variety of invertebrates from bare ground, litter, grass, and logs. They glean foliage, twigs, and bark, and occasionally hawk flying insects from the air. Some species are more specialized foragers; for example, the purple-crowned fairywren (Malurus coronatus), forages largely in pandanus along the edges of tropical streams, rivers, and ponds.

Reproductive biology

Most species are cooperative breeders with surviving progeny from previous years acting as helpers at the nest, or at least having delayed dispersal. Studies indicate high adult survival rates and abundant extra-pair copulations, with resident males often fathering a minority of the offspring produced in their territory. Nests are usually domed balls of woven grass with side entrances, with clutches of two to four red-spotted, white eggs. Incubation, usually by the female, lasts 10–14 days; young are fed for four to six weeks.

Conservation status

No species are currently threatened, but overgrazing and habitat alteration for agriculture and timber production are potential threats.

Significance to humans

None known, though many consider them among the most beautiful and endearing species of birds.

Species accounts

Resources

Blakers, M., S. J. J. F. Davies, and P. N. Reilly. The Atlas of Australian Birds. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1984.

Higgins, P. J., J. M. Peters, and W. K. Steele. Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds. Vol. 5. Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 2001.

Rowley, I., and E. Russell. Fairy-wrens and Grasswrens (Maluridae). Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Sibley, C. G., and B. Monroe Jr. Distribution and Taxonomy of Birds of the World. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1990.

Schodde, R. The Fairy-wrens. Melbourne: Landsdowne, 1982.

[Article by: William E. Davis, Jr]