Animalia Life
Psophodes olivaceus
TAXONOMY
Corvus olivaceus Latham, 1801, New South Wales, Australia.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Stockwhip bird, green-backed whipbird; French:
Psophode а tкte noire; German: Schwarzschopf-Wippflцter;
Spanish: Pбjaro Lбtigo Verde.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
10.4–12 in (26.5–30.5 cm); 1.6–2.5 oz (47–72 g). Dark olivegreen
body, black head with small black crest, white cheeks,
and long tail.
DISTRIBUTION
P. o. lateralis: northeast Australia; P. o. olivaceus: central east and
southeast Australia.
HABITAT
Rainforest, eucalypt forest, riverine vegetation, other low dense
vegetation.
BEHAVIOR
Sedentary and territorial at all seasons. Usually stays on the
ground or in low vegetation but may sing from high perch.
Furtive and usually difficult to observe, but curious, approaching
a quiet observer. Song an antiphonal duet, male producing
soft swish then drawn out, explosive whip-crack to which female
adds two quick, low notes.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Eats insects and other small invertebrates obtained by
rummaging through leaves and other litter on forest floor
with the bill.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
One to two broods are reared in the season, which runs
July–December. Two or three eggs, bluish white with black
and gray spots or scribbles, are laid in the cup-shaped nest
placed in dense vegetation near the ground. The female incubates
and cares for the young, with the male assisting in their
feeding. Incubation 18 days; young leave nest prematurely at
11–12 days.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Common but affected by clearing.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
The whip-crack song is one of Australia’s most familiar
bird sounds, known to many people who have never seen
the bird, and the source of many colloquial names for this
species.
Photo Gallery of - Eastern whipbird
