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15

Albert's Lyrebird (Menura alberti) Alternate name(s): "Albert Menura", "Prince Albert's Lyre-bird", "Northern Lyrebird" Size: male 80-90 cm; female 70-80 cm Weight: 0.6-1.2 kg

Australia: Family Group 15 Family Group 15 Table Noisy Pitta Rainbow Pitta Superb Lyrebird Albert's Lyrebird Noisy Scrub-bird Rufous Scrub-bird Western Bristlebird Black-tailed Treecreeper Red-browed Treecreeper White-browed Treecreeper Brown Treecreeper Rufous Treecreeper White-throated Treecreeper Hoopoe Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names Habitat pages Key plants Birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Albert's Lyrebirds are the smaller of two species of Australian lyrebirds. Their plumage is dimorphic, i.e. males and females are different. Male Albert's Lyrebirds have a rufous-brown back, from the head to the rump. The front is grey-brown, except for the throat, which is rufous. The characteristic feature is the tail, with silvery filamentary feathers (that are dark-brown on top) on the inside and one outer "lyre" feather on either side. The lyre feathers are dark and plain. Female Superb Lyrebirds have a body plumage that is similar to males', but they have a long dark-brown tail, with feathers that curve downward at the end. They lack both filamentous and lyre feathers. Females have rufous flanks and a rufous vent. The bill of both sexes is dark-grey, the irises are dark and the feet and long legs are grey. Twitcher's tip Compared to Superb Lyrebirds, the males' outer lyre feathers are darker and plainer. The throat of Albert's Lyrebirds has a richer rufous colour than that of Superb Lyrebirds.

Taxonomy, classification See Albert's Lyrebird at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed based on sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Albert's Lyrebird is available HERE . Albert's Lyrebirds reside only in a small area of the Great Dividing Range and its eastern slopes around the NSW/QLD border, from north-eastern NSW into south-eastern QLD, where they can be found in a semi-circular belt around Brisbane. Albert's Lyrebirds have a strong preference for dense, wet forest (rainforest) and its edges, where they spend most of their time in leaf litter.

Sightings Click here for sighting information A. Ross-Taylor reports spotting Albert's Lyrebirds at O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, in November 2013 and again in May 2014. J. Greaves reports finding Albert's Lyrebird at O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, in October 2015, when a sound recording was obtained. M. Eaton reports spotting Albert's Lyrebird at Cunninghams Gap, Main Range NP, QLD, in June 2017, and at O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, in January 2020.

Photos

ADULT

FEMALE

Frontal view of a female Albert's Lyrebird - note the absence of both lyre feathers from the sides and of filamentary feathers by the end of the tail (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, January 2020]

Near-lateral view of a female Albert's Lyrebird (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, January 2020]

Near-lateral view of a female Albert's Lyrebird (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, November 2013]

Lateral view of a female Albert's Lyrebird (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, November 2013]

Lateral view of a female Albert's Lyrebird (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, November 2013]

Lateral view of a female Albert's Lyrebird (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, November 2013]

Near-dorsal view of a female Albert's Lyrebird (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, January 2020]

Sex unknown

Frontal portrait of a female(?) Albert's Lyrebird (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cunningham's Gap, Main Range NP, QLD, June 2017]

Near-lateral view of a female(?) Albert's Lyrebird (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cunningham's Gap, Main Range NP, QLD, June 2017]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Sedentary

Elementary unit: Solitary/pair

Albert's Lyrebirds are extremely wary.

Near-lateral view of a female Albert's Lyrebird scratching in leaf litter (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, January 2020]

Lateral view of a female Albert's Lyrebird scratching in leaf litter (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, January 2020]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

alblyre_jg_20151019.m4a

(SE QLD)

Mimicry (+Lewin's Honeyeater)

© JG

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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