FAMILY NAME: Sylviidae SCIENTIFIC NAME: Cisticola exilis SUBSPECIES: lineocapilla, diminuta and alexandrae
SIZE: 9 to 11cm. (4 to 5") tip to tail.
LOCATION: Found along the northern and eastern coastal regions of Australia, and in the south east corner, up to 300km inland.
BREEDING: Breeding season is from September to March, laying from 3 to 4 eggs. Their nests are dome shaped with a side entrance. Woven onto live rushes, reeds or grass stems, about 1m from the ground. They are cronstructed from grasses, plant down and spiders web, then lined with plant down. Both parents build the nest, but the female does the incubating.
GENERAL: The females and non-breeding males are similar in appearance. The crown is streaked with black and the face a dull buff colour. The mature males have a golden head, without streaking, and generally a more stronger coloured appearance. They also have a shorter tail. The males go to a perch high up to call for a mate, then disappear down into the grasses or reeds. They inhabit areas of dense bush, grass or rushes, along the edges of water.
References:
Michael Morecombe.
Field Guide to Australian Birds, Complete Compact Edtion.Ken Simpson - Nicholas Day.
The Birds of Australia.M. Blakers - S. J. J. F. Davies - P. N. Reilly.
The Atlas of Australian Birds.Birds in Backyards.
www.birdsinbackyards.netGraham Pizzey - Frank Knight.
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia.
