WA Endemic Subspecies - An Annotated List: Part 3: The Kimberley

This is the final of our three part annotated list of WA's endemic subspecies, covering the far north-east of the state: the Kimberley region.

So sudden is the avifaunal shift across the boundary between the Pilbara (Eyrean) and the Kimberley (Torresian) regions, with tropical groups such as lorikeets, parrots, cuckoos, kingfishers and rollers making a dramatic appearance, that Major Whitlock once described it as like “entering a new country” [5]. The rugged mountain ranges and northern plateau of the Kimberley once created a massive Pleistocene drought refuge, separated from similar escarpment country in the Northern Territory by the drier plains of the Bonaparte paleobarrier at the foot of the gulf.  That said, the last of our three lists of WA regional endemics is surprisingly the shortest. Many of these are rock-loving taxa, including the two endemic species, the iconic Black Grasswren, and the eponymous Kimberley Honeyeater, first split from White-lined Honeyeater in C&B 2008 [4]. However the Kimberley also has some very distinctive subspecies, perhaps most notably the yellow-faced race blaauwi of Partridge Pigeon, and one of the ‘Lavender-flanked’ forms of Variegated Fairy-Wren, race rogersi. The Kimberley also has a handful of mangrove-dwelling endemic subspecies, though some of these are shared with the Pilbara. A few ‘almost endemics’ cross the border to the natural barrier of the Victoria River in the NT.

For those that missed it, a handy 2-page checklist of WA endemics can be downloaded here.

Species endemic to WA - Kimberley
Black Grasswren Amytornis housei
Dusky Gerygone Gerygone tenebrosa tenebrosa (also Pilbara G. t. christophori)
Kimberley Honeyeater Meliphaga fordiana

Subspecies endemic to WA - Kimberley
White-quilled Rock Pigeon Petrophassa albipennis albipennis
Partridge Pigeon Geophaps smithii blaauwi
Rainbow Pitta Pitta iris johnstoneiana
Variegated Fairy-wren Malurus lamberti rogersi
Green-backed Gerygone Gerygone chloronotus darwini
Varied Triller Lalage leucomela macrura
Mangrove Golden Whistler Pachycephala melanura melanura (also Pilbara)
White-breasted Whistler Pachycephala lanioides lanoides
Lemon-bellied Flycatcher Microeca flavigaster tormenti
Mangrove Robin Peneonanthe pulverulenta cinereiceps (also Pilbara)
Yellow White-eye Zosterops luteus balstoni (also Pilbara)
Horsfield’s Bushlark Mirafra javanica halli

Subspecies almost endemic to WA - Kimberley (range extends into small part of adjacent NT)
Purple-crowned Fairy-Wren Malurus coronatus coronatus
White-plumed Honeyeater Lichenostomus penicillatus calconi
Silver-backed Butcherbird Cracticus torquatus argenteus
Long-tailed Finch Poephila acuticauta acuticauta

WA Endemic Subspecies - An Annotated List: Part 2: The Pilbara and Arid Zone

This is the second of three checklists of bird species and subspecies endemic (or nearly so) to the state of Western Australia, featuring taxa of the Pilbara and arid zones of the state, an area more defined by what it is not – the heavily forested south-west or geologically distinct Kimberley – than what it is. This vast region comprises several geographic divisions, namely the Pilbara, Gascoyne, Mid West and Goldfields – but in biogeographic terms is usually treated as part of an even larger bioregion, the Eyrean Region covering most of central Australia,

At first glance the area seems poorly endowed with endemics. It contains only one WA endemic species, Dusky Gerygone, and even this is also found in the Kimberley. However a look at subspecies level reveals some interesting patterns of endemism:
* A cluster of subspecies centred on the Hamersley Ranges betrays their status as a drought refuge during ancient climatic fluctuations. Most notable here is the rock-loving race whitei of the Striated Grasswren, which remains a promising candidate for splitting as a full species.
* A long gap in the distribution of coastal mangroves along the length of 80 Mile Beach has apparently existed long enough to allows subspeciation in several mangrove-dwelling birds (Torresian Kingfisher, Dusky Gerygone, White-breasted Whistler), but interestingly not in others (Mangrove Golden Whistler, Yellow White-eye)
* The larger islands off the mid-west coast, namely the Abrolhos; Dirk Hartog, Bernier and Dorre Islands in the Shark Bay area; and Barrow Island, all support one or more endemic subspecies, many of them Vulnerable.
* Several endemic taxa inhabit the Nullarbor Plain, the greater part of which lies in Western Australia - most notably, Nullarbor Quail-thrush, which has very recently been resurrected as a full species.
* Finally, several species spanning the vast Eyrean interior have managed to diverge into eastern and western populations in the absence of any obvious barrier. Most important here is the recently split (and very nearly endemic) Western Quail-thrush (formerly race marginatum of Chestnut-breasted Quail-thrush), but also notably ‘Western’ Whiteface castaneiventris, which has diverged quite strongly from eastern birds despite continuous distribution across the interior.

For those that missed it, a handy 2-page checklist of WA endemics can be downloaded here.

Species endemic to WA – Pilbara and Arid Zone
Dusky Gerygone Gerygone tenebrosa christophori (also in Kimberley G. t. tenebrosa)

Species almost endemic to WA - Pilbara and Arid Zone (range extends into adjacent states)
Naretha Bluebonnet Northiella narethae
Western Quail-thrush Cinclosoma marginatum

Subspecies endemic to WA – Pilbara and Arid Zone
Spinifex Pigeon Geophaps plumifera ferruginea 
Peaceful Dove Geopelia striata clelandi 
Bar-shouldered Dove Geopelia humeralis headlandi
Blue-winged Kookaburra Dacelo leachii occidentalis
Torresian Kingfisher Todiramphus sordidus pilbara
Little Corella Cacatua sanguinea westralensis
  [Pheasant Coucal Centropus phasianinus highami] 
Western Bowerbird Chlamydera guttata carteri
Black-tailed Treecreeper Climacteris melanura wellsi
Striated Grasswren Amytornis striatus whitei*
Western [Thick-billed] Grasswren Amytornis textilis textilis
Rufous Fieldwren Calamanthus campestris rubiginosis, C. c. wayensis
White-browed Scrubwren Sericornis frontalis balstoni
Weebill Smicrornis brevirostris ochragaster
Southern Whiteface Aphelocephala leucopsis castaneiventris
Australian Magpie Cracticus tibicen longirostris
Black-faced Cuckoo-Shrike Coracina novaehollandiae subpallida
Mangrove Golden Whistler Pachycephala melanura melanura  (also Kimberley)
White-breasted Whistler Pachycephala lanoides carnarvoni
Mangrove Robin Peneonanthe pulverulenta cinereiceps (also Kimberley)
Horsfield’s Bushlark Mirafra javanica woodwardi
Yellow White-eye Zosterops luteus balstoni (also Kimberley)

Subspecies endemic to WA – Midwest offshore islands
Painted Button-quail Turnix varius scintillans
Lesser Noddy Anous tenuirostris melanops
White-winged Fairy-wren Malurus leucopterus leucopterus, M. l. edouardi
Variegated Fairy-wren Malurus lamberti bernieri
Southern Emu-wren Stipiturus malachurus hartogi
Rufous Fieldwren Calamanthus campestris hartogi, C. c. dorrie 

Subspecies almost endemic to WA - Pilbara and Arid Zone (range extends into adjacent states)
Galah Eolophus roseicapilla roseicapilla
Naretha Bluebonnet Northiella narethae
White-plumed Honeyeater Lichenostomus penicillatus carteri

WA Endemic Subspecies - An Annotated List: Part 1: Southwest

This is the first of three checklists of bird species and subspecies endemic (or nearly so) to the state of Western Australia. The distributions of these, for the most part, correspond approximately to the three biogeographic ‘refuge’ areas of the State (the South-west, Hamersley, and Kimberley refuges), which due to their rockier and more hilly terrain offered climatic refuge during cyclical periods of aridity throughout the Pleistocene. These refuges are, in turn, separated from each other (and those of neighbouring States) by coastward extensions of the less hospitable arid interior, namely the Nullarbor, Murchison, Canning, and Bonaparte paleo-barriers.

The South-west region has a very high level of botanical and faunal endemism, and birds are no exception – in fact with now 15 endemic full species (or 16 if you accept Western Fieldwren), South-west WA is rivalled only by far-north Queensland as an endemic bird region within Australia. What is probably less well appreciated is the high number of endemic bird subspecies in the greater South-west region, several of which are potential candidates for splitting as full species once molecular phylogenies are investigated. An even greater number are shared with South Australia’s  Eyre Peninsula, due to the former presence of a continuous belt of mallee below the Nullarbor cliffs in times of lower sea levels, which made the Nullarbor Barrier much leakier than it is today. We include some of these ‘almost endemics’ here (ie. range extends a small way into SA), but only for those subspecies which do not - according to Schodde and Mason’s distribution maps [1] - extend fully into the Eyre Peninsula itself.

A handy two-page Checklist of WA’s endemics is available - collect em’ all!

Updated Feb 2017, IOC 7.1

Species endemic to WA – Southwest
Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus latirostris
Baudin’s Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus baudinii
Western Corella Cacatua pastinator pastinator, C. p. derbyi
Red-capped Parrot Purpureicephalus spurius
Western Rosella Platycercus icterotis icterotis, P. i. xanthogenys 
Western Ground Parrot Pezoporus flaviventris
Noisy Scrub-bird Atrichornis clamosus
Red-winged Fairy-Wren Malurus elegans
Western Spinebill Acanthorhynchus superciliosus 
Gilbert's Honeyeater Melithreptus chloropsis
Western Wattlebird Anthochaera lunulata 
Western Bristlebird Dasyornis longirostris
  [Western Fieldwren Calamanthus (campestris) montanellus]
Western Thornbill Acanthiza inornata
White-breasted Robin Eopsaltria georgiana
Red-eared Firetail Stagonopleura oculata

Species ALMOST endemic to WA – Southwest
Western Whistler Pachycephala occidentalis

Subspecies endemic to WA – Southwest
Cape Barren Goose Cereopsis novaehollandiae grisea
Musk Duck Biziura lobata lobata
Little Shearwater Puffinus assimilis tunneyi
Australasian Swamphen Porphyrio melanotus bellus
  [Lewin’s Rail Lewinia pectoralis clelandi  - EXTINCT]
Brush Bronzewing Phaps elegant occidentalis
Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus banksii naso
Regent Parrot Polytelis anthopeplus anthopeplus (westralensis)
Australian Ringneck Barnardius zonarius semitorquatus  
Elegant Parrot Neophema elegans carteri
Rock Parrot Neophema petrophila petrophila
Splendid Fairy-wren Malurus splendens splendens
Southern Emu-wren  Stipiturus malachurus westernensis
  [Rufous Bristlebird Dasyornis broadbenti litoralis – EXTINCT (?)]
New Holland Honeyeater Phylidonyris novaehollandiae longirostris
White-cheeked Honeyeater Phylidonyris nigra gouldii*
Yellow-throated Miner Manorina flavigula obscura
Shy Heathwren Hylacola cauta whitlocki
White-browed Scrubwren Sericornis frontalis maculatus
Western Gerygone Gerygone fusca fusca
White-browed Babbler Pomatostomus superciliosus ashbyi
Western Whipbird Psophodes nigrogularis nigrogularis 
Copperback Quail-Thrush Cinclosoma clarum fordianum
Crested Shrike-tit Falcunculus frontatus leucogaster*
Australian Magpie Cracticus tibicen dorsalis
Grey Fantail Rhipidura albiscapa preissi (also Pilbara)
Scarlet Robin Petroica boodang campbelli **
Western Yellow Robin Eopsaltria griseogularis griseogularis
Welcome Swallow Hirundo neoxena carteri (also Pilbara)
Little Grassbird Megalurus gramineus thomasi

Subspecies almost endemic to WA – Southwest (extends into small part of neighbouring SA)
Singing Honeyeater Lichenostomus virescens virescens
Yellow-rumped Thornbill Acanthiza chrysorrhoa chrysorrhoa 
Black-faced Woodswallow Artamus cinereus cinereus
Grey Currawong Streptera versicolor plumbea
Australian Raven Corvus coronoides perplexus**
Australian Reed Warbler Acrocephalus australis gouldi (also Pilbara)
Silvereye Zosterops lateralis chloronotus 
Australasian Pipit Anthus australis bilbali

For Australian listers - Introduced species established only in WA
Laughing Dove Streptopelia senegalensis
Mute Swan Cygnus olor

(* = possible future splits)

South-west Endemics Part 2: White-breasted Robin

The White-breasted Robin (Eopsaltria georgiana) is a characteristic resident of tangled gullies and thick understorey in the karri and jarrah forests of south-west WA, though there is also a lesser-known relict population in coastal gully thickets north of Perth. “A quietly garbed but attractive bird” was Serventy and Whittell’s description [1], capturing surprise that a grey and white robin should be so much more striking than a plumage description would make it sound.

White-breasted Robin Eopsaltria georgiana

“Peculiar” was Leach’s more prosaic assessment [2]. Taxonomy of the White-breasted Robin has been surprisingly controversial, given that to superficial appearances it seems a typical (if colourless) Eopsaltria robin. It shares many mannerisms with the Eastern and Western Yellow Robins, such as the habit of clinging sideways to low trunks and branches, motionless except for occasional flicking of the tail and wings. Like them it is initially shy but hopelessly inquisitive, and cannot resist checking you out if you sit still for a moment. Indeed it is so similar to the Yellow Robins that this complex has long been considered a classic example of speciation by double invasion, with successive waves into the south-west forests evolving to lose all (White-breasted Robin) or half (Western Yellow Robin) of an originally fully yellow breast (Eastern Yellow Robin).

However it has sufficient differences from the Yellow Robins, particularly its eggs, to persistently trouble taxonomists. Campbell first removed it from Eopsaltria to Amaurodryas (now Melanodryas) based on a perceived “oological” association with the Dusky Robin of Tasmania; Mathews lumped it instead with Mangrove Robin in the genus Quoyornis, where it remained isolated for some time after Mangrove Robin was split off to yet another monospecific genus Peneonanthe [2]. However a 2009 molecular phylogenetic study [3] reported the unexpected finding that the White-breasted Robin may instead be most closely related to the ‘other’ yellow robins - the two Tregellasia robins (the White-faced and Pale Yellow Robin of north-eastern rainforests).
UPDATE: Christidis et al 2011 [6] confimed this unexpected paraphyletic status of Eopsaltria and recommended that White-breasted Robin return to the genus Quoyornis.

3 People, 50 Hours, 4,474km, One Bird - Eurasian Hoopoe near Broome

In early November this year, the Australian twitching community went into overdrive with news that a Eurasian Hoopoe (Upupa epops) had turned up near Broome. Eurasian Hoopoes occur widely across Europe and Asia. The Broome bird has been identified as the strongly migratory race saturata, which breeds mostly in east Asia (Japan, Siberia, South China etc.) and migrates south to winter, making it the most likely candidate for vagrancy to Australia. Nonetheless, most Aussie twitchers would probably admit that the species had not figured highly on their list of likely new birds for Australia.

Eurasian Hoopoe at Roebuck Roadhouse near Broome.

The bird was found on the 10th November hanging around near the Roebuck Roadhouse, 30km out of Broome, by Kim Onton, Chris Hassell and Marten Hulzebosch. Being a first record for Australia, and a particularly charismatic species to boot, it was no surprise that news of the sighting sent twitchers into something of a frenzy, as many raced to work out the feasibility of a mad dash to see the bird. Fortunately for those that have made the trip, the bird has generally remained in situ since the initial sighting (still present Saturday 3rd December), although it hasn't always been easy to locate and a few people dipped several times before connecting.

The Broome Eurasian Hoopoe feeding up!

Intermediate Morph Soft-plumaged Petrels off Perth

The Soft-plumaged Petrel (Pterodroma mollis) is a common visitor to offshore waters of southern Western Australia, predominantly from late autumn to early spring. Pelagic seabird trips off Perth, run since 1996, have recorded the species on 27 of the 31 trips run (an 87% recording rate). The species has been recorded less commonly on pelagic trips off Albany, run since 2003, having been recorded on five of the nine trips run (a 56% recording rate).

Soft-plumaged Petrel off Perth.

Soft-plumaged Petrels are one of several petrel species to exhibit polymorphism. The pale morph is easily the most commonly occurring variant, but dark morph individuals are also regularly (but rarely) recorded. Intermediate individuals have been recorded, but these are particularly rare. Indeed, Onley & Scofield [1] report only “a few scruffy intermediate specimens … in museum collections” and “no recent records at sea or from breeding grounds”. This assertion is clouded by differences in treatment of intermediate individuals between authors. Shirihai [2] for example appears to include all intermediate morphs, along with the wholly dark morph, under the dark morphs. He describes the dark morph as being “partially (mottled) to wholly dusky-brown/sooty-grey on underparts, with variable breastband, but rest of plumage as pale morph”. Much of the confusion is likely down to the fact that in reality there is not a distinct intermediate morph; rather intermediate birds can fall anywhere on a spectrum between typical pale morph birds and fully dark individuals.

Pale morph Soft-plumaged Petrel off Perth.

Crake City - Thomson's Lake

“This must be Crake City”, my son proclaimed. Summer at Thomson’s Lake is probably as close as you can get to Crake City in Western Australia. We had started the morning at Kogolup Swamp but the water levels there were too high. It was ankle deep at the edge of the shallowest rushes and the crakes could be heard tucked up deep in the rushes where our spying eyes could not see them. We moved to Thomson’s Lake which dries earlier and had plenty of mud exposed at the edges of the rushes. Crake heaven. Well, crake watching birders' heaven!

Australian Spotted Crake at Thomson's Lake.

Perth Wader Sites (Part 2: Coastal & Estuarine Sites)

This is the second  part of our two-part guide to wader sites near Perth, this time focussing on coastal and estuarine sites (although the sharp-eyed amongst you will notice a couple of sites that are technically lakes have snuck in here too!). The sites this time are listed roughly in order of closeness to Perth CBD, although there are a few out of place.

Alfred Cove: Alfred Cove is one of Perth’s best known wader sites, located within 15 minutes of the city centre. Whilst wader numbers (particularly small species like Sharp-tailed and Curlew Sandpiper) have fallen significantly at the site in the last decade or so, you can usually still find a reasonable variety of waders here over summer. The most commonly seen species are Bar-tailed Godwit, Great Knot, Common Greenshank, Grey Plover, Australian Pied Oystercatcher and Black-winged Stilt. Red Knot, Red-necked Avocet, Pacific Golden Plover, Red-necked Stint and Red-capped Plover are also reasonably regular, and Black-tailed Godwits have been observed regularly over the last few years. Other less common visitors can include Pacific Golden Plover, Whimbrel, Terek Sandpiper, Grey-tailed Tattler, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, and Banded Stilt.

To reach the cove, park near the sports centre at Troy Park off Burke Dr. Check the samphire and any muddy margins of the cove and any nearby sandbanks and mudflats along the Attadale foreshore - the extent of the exposed sandbanks varies with the level of the tide.

Grey Plover are one of the most common coastal waders to visit the Perth area, and can usually be seen at Alfred Cove during wader season.