Norfolk Robin
A species of Australian Red Robins and Allies Scientific name : Petroica multicolor Genus : Australian Red Robins and Allies
Norfolk Robin, A species of Australian Red Robins and Allies
Botanical name: Petroica multicolor
Genus: Australian Red Robins and Allies
Content
Description General Info
Description
The Norfolk robin is similar to the Pacific robin, as well as to the scarlet robin. The adult male is distinctive, having upperparts that are mainly black with a large white spot on the forehead, white bars on the wings, and vestigial white tips to the tail. Its breast and upper belly are bright red with the lower belly white. The female is much duller, mainly brown with a pinkish breast. Immature individuals are similar to females. It is the largest of the Pacific robin group, though slightly smaller than the scarlet robin. 
Size
14 cm
Feeding Habits
Norfolk Robin primarily consumes invertebrates, including beetles, hymenopterans, and pseudoscorpions. With a 60% preference for ground-foraging, norfolk Robin hops and gleans food, or probes the litter layer; 27% of foraging involves pouncing from perches. Norfolk Robin occasionally joins mixed-species flocks to feed.
Habitat
The norfolk Robin typically resides in mature rainforests with a preference for areas where the forest canopy does not exceed 10 meters in height. These environments generally have an open ground layer that is characterized by deep, moist leaf litter. While the species is mostly associated with native forest types, it can occasionally be found in stands of palm and olive trees, as well as in areas with non-native eucalyptus forests.
Dite type
Insectivorous
General Info
Distribution Area
The robin is restricted to Norfolk Island, where it is largely confined to the Mt Pitt section of the Norfolk Island National Park and remnant patches of forest nearby. It mainly inhabits the native subtropical rainforest, with lower densities in other wooded habitats. It prefers areas with a dense understorey and an open ground layer with deep, moist litter for foraging in.
Species Status
After a period of decline to the 1980s, when the birds disappeared from many parts of the island, the population of the Norfolk robin apparently stabilised and was estimated at 400-500 pairs in 1988 with little change in 1997. Ongoing threats include habitat degradation, and predation by black rats and feral cats. It is considered Endangered on the IUCN Red List because of the restricted size of the population and the small area of its distribution. Ongoing conservation management actions include control of rats and feral cats to minimise predation, as well as control of invasive weeds to minimise habitat degradation. It is proposed to reintroduce the Norfolk robin to nearby Phillip Island, when the regenerating habitat there is suitable.
Scientific Classification
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