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Western Gerygone (Gerygone fusca) Alternate name(s): "White-tailed Warbler", "White-tailed Flyeater", "Western Warbler", "Western Flyeater", "Inland Warbler", "Fuscous Warbler", "Fuscous Flyeater", "Sleepy Dick" Aboriginal name(s): Race "fusca": "warylbodang" Size: 10-11 cm Body mass: 5-7 g

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Similar species

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

Physical description Click here for a physical description Western Gerygones are very small bushland birds. Their front is light-grey, from the throat to the undertail coverts, while the back is darker brownish-grey, with dark-grey flight feathers and a dark-grey tail. They have thin eye-rings surrounding eyes with red irises. The bill and lores are dark-grey, while the legs and feet are grey. Juveniles have a yellowish front. Twitcher's tip Compared to other, similar greyish gerygones, Western Gerygones are the only species found in drier, more open habitats.

Taxonomy, classification See Western Gerygone 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 Western Gerygone is available HERE . NB: Reports on ebird of birds submitted by birdwatchers from the Australian Outback tend to be clustered along roads and public areas such as camp grounds; in such cases their distribution is not a good representation of the overall distribution of the species. All three extant races of Western Gerygones are endemic to Australia. Throughout most of the NT, except its Top End, just South of the Kimberley and further into inland north-western WA race "mungi" is present. In its western extremity its range overlaps with that of nominate race "fusca", which populates the entire western two-thirds of WA. Race "fusca" is also found on Eyre peninsula in SA. Race "exsul" is found throughout the central parts of VIC and almost all of inland NSW and QLD (except the Lake Eyre Basin, Cape York peninsula and a narrow coastal strip along the East coast). Western Gerygones have a preference for open woodland, in particular mallee. Where to look? How to find this species? When found, Western Gerygones are easily identified by their calls. However, when not bound by the confines of a breeding territory, visual identification can be a lot harder. They have the tendency to forage in a tree, call once, then move on, and so forth. It is much easier to get close to them during the breeding season because then their "tree-hopping" is restricted to a limited area and sooner or later either one of a pair will return to a particular foraging tree. It is even better to find the pair's nest, which is usually placed at about eye height.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "fusca" J. Greaves reports spotting a Western Gerygone, race "fusca", at Bells Rapids, Swan River, near Perth, WA, in June 2015. C. Pears found a Western Gerygone, race "fusca", at Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, in July 2025. Race "exsul" A first photo of a Western Gerygone, race "exsul", was obtained at Eulah Creek, 20 km East of Narrabri, in August 2010. Since then, Western Gerygones, race "exsul", are seen in the same location semi-regularly. In August 2013 a pair was first found in Deriah Aboriginal Area, 30 km East of Narrabri, NSW. They were subsequently seen there regularly and found by us to be nesting at that location. We are quite confident that we had seen Western Gerygones, race "exsul", 20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, in 2005-2006, without being able to take a photo. C. Hayne reports spotting Western Gerygones, race "exsul", regularly in woodland and scrub in various locations near Moree, NSW. A single Western Gerygone, race "exsul", was spotted by us at Narrabri Lake in June 2013. M. Eaton reports spotting Western Gerygones, race "exsul", at the Bowra Wildlife Sanctuary, near Cunnamulla, QLD, in June 2019. Another was found at the Roma Bush Gardens, Roma, QLD, in August 2022.

Photos

Race "fusca"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Near-lateral view of a Western Gerygone (photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, July 2025]

Near-lateral/ventral view of a Western Gerygone (photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, July 2025]

Lateral view of a Western Gerygone (photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, July 2025]

Lateral view of a Western Gerygone in flight, approaching a casuarina tree (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[Bells Rapids, Swan River, near Perth, WA, June 2015]

Race "exsul"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal view of a Western Gerygone; note the characteristic red eyes and thin white eyebrow
[Eulah Creek, NSW, May 2013]

Close-up frontal/ventral view of a Western Gerygone
[Eulah Creek, NSW, September 2022]

Close-up near-frontal view of a Western Gerygone (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Roma Bush Gardens, Roma, QLD, August 2022]

Near-frontal view of a Western Gerygone
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2018]

Close-up near-lateral/ventral view of a Western Gerygone
[Eulah Creek, NSW, September 2022]

Lateral view of a Western Gerygone
[Eulah Creek, NSW, May 2013]

Lateral view of a Western Gerygone (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Roma Bush Gardens, Roma, QLD, August 2022]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of a Western Gerygone issuing its call
[Eulah Creek, NSW, September 2015]

Dorsal view of a Western Gerygone
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2018]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Oct - Jan

Eggs: 2 - 3

Incubation period: 12 - 14 days

Fledging age: 13 - 15(?) days

Nest building: Female & male

Incubation: Female & male

Dependent care: Female & male

Nest

"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal]

Type: Domed hanging bottle

Material: Grass stems, bark strips, webs

Height above ground: 2 - 10 m

Click HERE to see a Western Gerygone feeding its chick and keeping the nest clean.

Western Gerygone chick at the entrance of its nest (photo courtesy of V. Collins)
[Merriwindi SCA, near Kenebri, NSW, January 2021]

Western Gerygone chick at the entrance of its nest (photo courtesy of V. Collins)
[Merriwindi SCA, near Kenebri, NSW, January 2021]

Western Gerygone sitting on its nest
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, November 2013]

Western Gerygone nest
[Near Eulah Creek, NSW, November 2019]

Western Gerygone nest
[Near Eulah Creek, NSW, November 2019]

Western Gerygone nest in a Cypress pine tree
[Near Bugilbone, NSW, November 2017]

Eggs

"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay]

Size: 18 x 14 mm

Colour: Creamy, with light-brown speckles

Shape: Tapered oval

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Sedentary

Elementary unit: Solitary/pair

We have seen Western Gerygones hunting for insects in various kinds of rough-barked trees, such as Acacia salicina, Acacia cambagei and Cypress pine.

Food, Diet

Western Gerygones prey on small insects that they take from leaves.

Lateral view of a Western Gerygone hunting for insects in an Acacia salicina
[Eulah Creek, NSW, May 2013]

Lateral view of a Western Gerygone hanging upside down while hunting for insects (aphids?) in a Cypress pine tree
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, August 2013]

Lateral view of a Western Gerygone hunting for insects (aphids?) in a Cypress pine tree, trying to upright itself again
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, August 2013]

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.

Some species of gerygones have very elaborate, long calls that they tend to sometimes abbreviate. When, below, we mark a call as "abbreviated", this does not mean to say that the recording is incomplete, but that the bird rendered only a partial (or abbreviated) call.

wstgery_20220918.mp3	exsul (NW NSW)	Territorial call (with long lead-up)	© MD
wstgery_20220918_2.mp3	exsul (NW NSW)	Territorial call	© MD
wstgery_20191027.m4a	exsul (NW NSW)	Territorial call	© MD
wstgery_20150813.mp3	exsul (NW NSW)	Territorial call	© MD
wstgery_20151107_2.mp3	exsul (NW NSW)	Feeding calls?	© MD
wstgery_20210116.m4a	exsul (NW NSW)	Nestling begging + parents' response + feeding	© MD
wstgery_20210312.m4a	exsul (NW NSW)	Immature practising	© MD
wstgery_20150808.mp3	exsul (NW NSW)	?	© MD
wstgery_20141023.mp3	exsul (NW NSW)	? (Immature?)	© MD

More Western Gerygone 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.

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