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Victoria's Riflebird
(Ptiloris victoriae)
: "Lesser Rifle-bird", "Queen Victoria Riflebird"
Aboriginal name(s): "duwuduwu"
Size: 23-25 cm
Weight: 90-120 g (male), 75-95 g (female)
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Similar species |
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Physical description |
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Click here for a physical description
Victoria's Riflebirds are small birds of paradise.
Their plumage is
dimorphic, i.e.
males and
females
are different.
Male Victoria's Riflebirds have glossy, "velvet"-black plumage, except for the belly, which
is glossy-olive. Only the crown, the "gorget" and the central tail
feathers have purple to turquoise iridescensce.
Female
Victoria's Riflebirds have an off-white throat patch with
a black stripe on either side of it and an otherwise cinnamon-buff
front with sparse, relatively inconspicuous brown chevrons.
The head, except for white eyebrows, the nape of the neck, the rest
of the back are all dark-olive; the tail is brownish-olive. The
flight feathers are brownish.
The eyes of both sexes have brown irises. The long, narrow,
slightly downward-curved bill (females have a longer
bill than males) is grey. The legs and feet are also grey.
Juvenile males
resemble females until they moult
into their adult plumage.
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Twitcher's tip |
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Compared with Paradise
Riflebirds, male Victoria's Riflebirds have less prominent scales
on their chests; females have less colour contrast on their front.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Victoria's
Riflebird at Wikipedia .
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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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
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The global distribution of Victoria's Riflebird is available
HERE
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Victoria's Riflebirds are endemic to Australia.
They are found only in the Atherton (and adjacent) Tablelands,
from just to the South of Cooktown to Townsville, QLD.
Victoria's Riflebirds have a preference for rainforest and adjacent
woodlands.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
B. Hensen reports spotting a Victoria's Riflebird at
Julatten, QLD, in July 2013.
M. Eaton found a Victoria's Riflebird at Kuranda, near Cairns,
QLD, in July 2018.
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Photos |
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ADULT |
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FEMALE |
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Near-frontal view of a female Victoria's Riflebird (photo
courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Julatten, QLD, July 2013]
Near-frontal view of a female Victoria's Riflebird (photo
courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Kuranda, near Cairns, QLD, July 2018]
Near-lateral view of a female Victoria's Riflebird searching
for insects (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Julatten, QLD, July 2013]
Lateral view of a female Victoria's Riflebird using its powerful
bill to debark
a dead branch in search of insects
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Julatten, QLD, July 2013]
Near-dorsal view of a female Victoria's Riflebird (photo
courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Julatten, QLD, July 2013]
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Call(s)/Song |
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For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The
interpretation of their meaning is our own; are welcome.
More Victoria's Riflebird 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.