Tasmanian Thornbill

1. Bright rufous-brown forehead and wing panel

2. Fluffy white undertail coverts

3. Large dark red eye and olive-brown upperparts

These thornbills are primarily insectivorous, sometimes eating seeds and fruit. They are active foragers, gleaning insects from leaves, bark, and twigs at all levels of the forest. Breeding occurs from September to January. The nest is a neat, domed structure made from green moss, grass, and bark strips, usually hidden low in dense shrubs or ferns and featuring a hinged flap that nearly covers the entrance. Females lay 3 to 4 eggs and incubate them alone; after hatching, both parents feed the chicks.

Tasmanian Thornbills are common in Tasmania’s temperate rainforests, wet sclerophyll forests, and dense shrublands, especially around wet gullies and creek lines. They are also found in bogs, swamps, and shrub-dominated wetlands. Look for them foraging from the ground up to the canopy, often in mixed flocks with other small Tasmanian birds. Their sweet, musical warbling, often introduced by “tsit tsit” notes, is a reliable clue to their presence in dense vegetation.