The hooded robin (''Melanodryas cucullata'') is a small
passerine bird native to
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. Like many brightly coloured robins of the
Petroicidae, it is
sexually dimorphic; the male bears a distinctive black-and-white plumage, while the female is a nondescript grey-brown.
Taxonomy
Like all Australian robins, it is not closely related to either the
European robin or the
American robin
The American robin (''Turdus migratorius'') is a migratory bird of the true thrush genus and Turdidae, the wider thrush family. It is named after the European robin because of its reddish-orange breast, though the two species are not closel ...
, but belongs rather to the
Corvida parvorder comprising many tropical and Australian passerines, including
pardalotes,
fairy-wrens, and
honeyeaters, as well as
crows. Initially thought to be related to
Old World flycatchers, it was described as ''Muscicapa cucullata'' by the English ornithologist
John Latham in 1801. Later described as ''Grallina bicolor'' by
Nicholas Aylward Vigors
Nicholas Aylward Vigors (1785 – 26 October 1840) was an Ireland, Irish zoologist and politician. He popularized the classification of birds on the basis of the quinarian system.
Early life
Vigors was born at Old Leighlin, County Carlow on 17 ...
and
Thomas Horsfield, it was later placed in the genus ''
Petroica'' for many years before being transferred to ''
Melanodryas
''Melanodryas'' is a genus of passerine birds in the Australasian robin family Petroicidae.
The genus was introduced by the English ornithologist and bird artist John Gould in 1865 with the hooded robin (''Melanodryas cucullata'') as the t ...
''.
The generic name ''melanodryas'' derives from the Greek ''melas'' 'black' and ''dryas'' 'wood-nymph'. The specific name ''cucullata'' derives from Late Latin ''cucullatus'' meaning 'hooded'.
Description
The hooded robin is around 16 cm (6 in) in length. The male has a distinctive pied coloration; with a black head and neck ("hood"), white chest and underparts, and black wings with white wing bars. The eyes, bill, and feet are also black. The female is an undistinguished grey-brown above, with a pale grey throat and paler underneath, and dark brown wings and white wing bars. Juveniles are similar to females.
Distribution
It is found across the Australian continent, though not in
Cape York nor
Tasmania; its natural
habitat is Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation.
Breeding
Breeding season is July to November with one or two broods raised. The nest is a neat cup made of soft, dry grass and bark.
Spider webs, feathers, and fur are used for binding/filling, generally in a tree crevice, hollow or fork. The clutch generally consists of two pale olive- or bluish-green eggs, with darker spots and blotches, measuring .
Conservation status
Hooded robins are not listed as threatened on the Australian
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. However, their conservation status varies from state to state within Australia. For example:
* The hooded robin 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 yet been prepared.
Department of Sustainability and Environment, Victoria
* On the 2013 advisory list of threatened vertebrate fauna in Victoria, the hooded robin is listed as near threatened.
References
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1585970
hooded robin
hooded robin
Endemic birds of Australia
hooded robin
Taxa named by John Latham (ornithologist)
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot