Purple-backed Fairywren
Malurus assimilis
- Class
- Bird
- Rarity
- Common
- Observations
- 1,540
- Most observed in
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Conservation
- Least Concern
Description
The purple-backed fairywren (Malurus assimilis) is a fairywren that is native to Australia. Described by Alfred John North in 1901, it has four recognised subspecies. In a species that exhibits sexual dimorphism, the brightly coloured breeding male has chestnut shoulders and azure crown and ear coverts, while non-breeding males, females and juveniles have predominantly grey-brown plumage, although females of two subspecies have mainly blue-grey plumage. Distributed over much of the Australian continent, the purple-backed fairywren is found in scrubland with plenty of vegetation providing dense cover.
Summary adapted from the Wikipedia article “Purple-backed fairywren”.