Voice
Throaty, low, warblings that build to clear whistles and sharp whip sounds, 'chwieop-cheiop-chweip-wheit-whit'. A shorter, 'whit-wheeta-whit' issued frequently. A single, 'wheeeeit'.
Nest
A frail shallow cup composed of dry grass and rootlets, lined with finer material, usually in the upright fork of a mangrove, within a few meters of the ground.
Eggs (Guide)
2 or 3; buff or stone, with dark red-brown and grey spots, often in a zone at the larger end; oval; about 21 x 16 mm. Incubation: said to be by both sexes.
Previously treated as a subspecies of Golden Whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis), but the two meet or overlap in range without interbreeding in north-eastern Australia and most of Bismarck Archipelago; on other hand, apparent hybrid populations exist on islands eastern and south of Bougainville and probably on islands off eastern New Guinea. Subspecies whitneyi may be closer to Golden Whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis) or a hybrid. Subspecies intergrade in Australia. Proposed subspecies hilli (north-western Western Australia) and violetae (north-western Northern Territory) are intergrades between nominate and robusta. Described taxon bynoei (western Western Australia) is a synonym of robusta.
The following 6 subspecies are recognised:
melanura Gould, 1843 - Coasts of northern and north-western western Australia (Kimberley and Pilbara).
robusta Masters, 1876 - Northern western Australia (from about Cambridge Gulf) eastern across coastal northern Territory (including islands of Bathurst, Melville and Groote Eylandt) to northern and north-eastern Queensland (western and eastern sides of Cape York Peninsula, southern on eastern coast to around Shoalwater Bay).
spinicaudus (Pucheran, 1853) - Southern New Guinea (from Merauke eastern along coast to Hall Sound) and islands in Torres Strait.
dahli Reichenow, 1897 - Bismarck Archipelago (Long I, Witu Is, Blanche Bay, islands in Bungula Bay, Duke of York Is, Talele, Uatom, Palikuru Is, Nusa, Malie, Nissan I) and south-eastern New Guinea coast eastern from Hall Sound, including Fergusson I and other islands off tip.
whitneyi E. J. O. Hartert, 1929 - Whitney, Momalufu and Akiri (west of Shortland I), in extreme north-western Solomon Is. Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Oriole Whistler (Pachycephala orioloides).
violetae Mathews, 1912 - Northern Australia.
Similar Species
Closely resembling the Golden Whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis) which is larger, tal not completely black, a narrower yellow cllar and lacks grey-wing patches.
Compare Images
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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BirdLife International Species Factsheet