Speckled Warbler
A species of Redthroat and Speckled Warbler Scientific name : Pyrrholaemus sagittatus Genus : Redthroat and Speckled Warbler
Speckled Warbler, A species of Redthroat and Speckled Warbler
Botanical name: Pyrrholaemus sagittatus
Genus: Redthroat and Speckled Warbler
Content
Description General Info
Description
The speckled warbler is a small, ground-dwelling warbler, measuring 11.5 to 12.5 centimetres (4.5 to 4.9 in) in length and weighing 13.5 grams (0.48 oz). It has an off-white face, streaked with buffy-brown on the ear coverts, and the crown is brown with white speckles. The eye is brown, the bill is dark grey-brown, and the legs are pinkish-brown. The male has a black upper margin to the brow, whereas on the female it is reddish-brown. The plumage of the upperparts is grey-brown with darker streaks. The tail is dark-brown with a black subterminal band and white tips, and it is usually held horizontally. The underparts are yellowish-white and heavily streaked with black. The juvenile is similar to the female, but the top of its head is more diffusely spotted.
Size
13 cm
Feeding Habits
Speckled Warbler's primary diet consists of insects, including beetles, wasps, ants, moth larvae, mantids, and grasshoppers, with occasional seeds. It forages on the ground, often alongside mixed-species flocks, showcasing a social feeding behavior.
Habitat
The speckled Warbler thrives in dry sclerophyll eucalypt forests and woodlands, favoring areas with a grassy understory and scattered shrubs. These environments typically extend across slopes, tablelands, and into semi-arid inland regions including plains and floodplains. The species shows a preference for rocky ridges and gullies, and can also inhabit mallee ecosystems with cypress pines, as well as dense acacia shrublands. Within these habitats, the ground layer, which includes elements like grass, bracken, and sedges, is particularly crucial for the speckled Warbler.
Dite type
Insectivorous
General Info
Behavior
The speckled warbler is quiet and well camouflaged. However, when disturbed, it will make a grating twitter and fly to a perch, then soon return to foraging on the ground. Its song is soft, mellow and musical, interspersed with sharp whistles, somewhat like that of the western gerygone (Gerygone fusca). It is also a mimic of other species. Like the redthroat (Pyrrholaemus brunneus), the speckled warbler makes a distinctive whirring sound with its wings in flight.
Distribution Area
The speckled warbler is found in southeastern Australia. It is patchily distributed in Queensland, roughly southeast of a line between Mackay and Charleville, being somewhat more common towards the extreme southeast of the state. In New South Wales, it occurs throughout the New England Tablelands and the South West Slopes, extending westward to the Pilliga Scrub and to Griffith in the Riverina, and eastwards into the Hunter Valley. It is fairly common in the Australian Capital Territory. In Victoria, the speckled warbler is found within a broad strip, including the Chiltern Box-Ironbark and Warby-Ovens National Parks, the Bendigo region, the Brisbane Ranges and You Yangs, across to Balmoral on the western side of the Grampians. It is scarce to moderately common within its range. Its preferred habitat is open eucalypt woodland with rocky gullies, tussocky grass, scattered logs, and sparse shrubbery.
Species Status
Although relatively abundant with a population estimated at 400,000, the speckled warbler appears to be declining within its range. Threats include land clearance, leading to the advent of invasive weeds and increased predator pressure, as well as over-grazing and salinization with consequent fragmentation and degradation of habitat. Drought and fire also pose ongoing threats. On the IUCN Red List, the speckled warbler was uplisted from near threatened to least concern status in 2000, having found to be more common than previously believed. In October 2016, it continued to be assessed as least concern on the IUCN Red List. Speckled warbler are not listed as threatened on the Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. It is listed as "vulnerable" under the New South Wales Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995. It is listed as "threatened" on the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (1988). Under this Act, an Action Statement for the recovery and future management of this species has not been prepared. On the 2007 advisory list of threatened vertebrate fauna in Victoria, the speckled warbler is listed as vulnerable.
Scientific Classification
Phylum
Chordates Class
Birds Order
Perching birds Family
Australasian warblers Species
Speckled Warbler