Pale-yellow Robin.
Photo: Purnell Collection © Australian Museum
Distribution map of Tregellasia capito
Map © Birds Australia Birdata
Pale-yellow Robin
Scientific name: Tregellasia capito
Family: Petroicidae
Order: Passeriformes
- Featured Bird Groups
- Small insect-eating birds
What does it look like?
Description
The adult Pale-yellow Robin is a small bird, grey-olive above, yellow below, with white or orange sides to the forehead. It has yellowish legs and a short and rather broad bill. The juveniles are red-brown above, pale below and have white streaks. These robins are usually seen in pairs or singly and are quiet and unobtrusive birds. This species is sometimes known as the Buff-faced, Large-headed, Pale or Rufous-lored Robin.
Similar species
The slightly larger Eastern Yellow Robin, Eopsaltria australis, has blackish legs, lacks white markings in front of the eye and has a yellow rump. The similarly sized White-faced Robin, T. leucops, has more extensive white markings around the eyes and a black forehead.
Where does it live?
Distribution
The Pale-yellow Robin is endemic to Australia. It has two disjunct (separate) populations on the east coast, both on the eastern side of the Great Dividing Range. The first population occurs in New South Wales, from the upper Hunter (Dungog) to just north of the Tropic of Capricorn. The second population occurs from Townsville to near Cooktown in northern Queensland.
Habitat
The Pale-yellow Robin is found in moist eucalypt forests, subtropical and tropical rainforests with dense vegetation, such as vine thickets.
Seasonal movements
Movements of the Pale-yellow Robin are poorly known, but it is considered sedentary.What does it do?
Feeding
The Pale-yellow Robin feeds mainly on insects, and sometimes seeds. This species forages on the ground to the middle levels of the forest. They forage among foliage or on the ground, mainly pouncing on prey on the ground or from perches.Breeding
The Pale-yellow Robin builds a cup-shaped nest from grass, rootlets and spiders' web, decorated with moss, bark, lichen and leaves. The nests are usually found one to six metres above the ground in the fork of a shrub or vine in dense vegetation. The eggs are incubated by the female. The male brings food back to the female on the nest. The young are fed by both parents and additional helpers (usually males), if available. If a predator approaches the nest, the parent can distract the predator by faking an injury and drawing the predator away from the nest.Living with us
Living with humans
The Pale-yellow Robin is threatened by habitat clearing for agriculture and housing, being particularly prone to the effects of habitat fragmentation. This species is also sensitive to the thinning of vegetation and disturbance caused by logging.
References
Pizzey, G. and Knight, F. 1997. Field Guide to the Birds of Australia. Angus and Robertson, Sydney.
Simpson, K and Day, N. 1999. Field guide to the birds of Australia, 6th Edition. Penguin Books, Australia.
Higgins, P.J. and J.M. Peter (eds) 2002. Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds, Volume 6: Pardalotes to Shrike-thrushes. Oxford University Press, Melbourne.