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17

Fernwren (Oreoscopus gutturalis) Alternate name(s): "Australian Fernwren" Size: 13-15 cm Weight: 17-23 g

Australia: Family Group 17 Family Group 17 Table Spotted Pardalote Forty-spotted Pardalote Red-browed Pardalote Striated Pardalote Large-billed Scrubwren Atherton Scrubwren White-browed Scrubwren Tasmanian Scrubwren Yellow-throated Scrubwren Pilotbird Rock Warbler Chestnut-rumped Heathwren Shy Heathwren Striated Fieldwren Rufous Fieldwren Fernwren Scrubtit Speckled Warbler Redthroat Western Gerygone Brown Gerygone Mangrove Gerygone Large-billed Gerygone Green-backed Gerygone Fairy Gerygone White-throated Gerygone Weebill Yellow Thornbill Striated Thornbill Buff-rumped Thornbill Yellow-rumped Thornbill Western Thornbill Slender-billed Thornbill Chestnut-rumped Thornbill Brown Thornbill Inland Thornbill Slaty-backed Thornbill Tasmanian Thornbill Mountain Thornbill Southern Whiteface Chestnut-breasted Whiteface Banded Whiteface 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 Fernwrens are small, inconspicuous birds. Their plumage is very inconspicuous. They are dark-brown almost throughout, with almost no colour variations, apart from thin white supercilia, a white throat patch and a black chest patch right under the white one. The irises are reddish-brown; the nearly straight and fine bill is dark-grey and the legs and feet are dark pinkish-grey. Juveniles have a subdued, almost totally absent, facial pattern and otherwise resemble adults.

Taxonomy, classification See Fernwren at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Fernwren is available HERE . Fernwrens are endemic to tropical rainforest in the highlands of northern QLD. Their range extends from just northward of Townsville, QLD, to near Cape Tribulation, QLD. Fernwrens have a strong preference for highland tropical rainforest, usually above 600 m altitude, but in wet times also down to ca. 300 m, where they forage in leaf litter.

Sightings Click here for sighting information M. Eaton reports first finding a Fernwren at Mt. Lewis NP, QLD, in August 2023. All sighting and audio information presented on this page has been kindly contributed by M. Eaton.

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.

fernwrn_me_20230816.mp3	(Mt. Lewis NP, QLD)	Territorial calls?	© ME
fernwrn_me_20230815.mp3	(Mt. Hypipamee, QLD)	Territorial calls? (distant)	© ME

More Fernwren sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

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.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site? If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.

Disclaimer: Comments are always welcome. We give no guarantee that the information presented on these pages is always correct or up-to-date. External links are marked as such and we take no responsibility for the contents of external pages. All images on this site are protected by copyright & used by permission of the respective owners. If you wish to reproduce them or any of the material presented on this web site, please contact us: We hereby acknowledge the original custodians of the land which is described on these pages, including the Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people of the North-west Slopes and Plains of NSW, and the traditional owners of other lands and nations within this country. We acknowledge elders past, present and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded.          Last updated: Thu, 17 August 2023, 20:40 +00:00