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You are here: Home | Legends and Myths | The Australian Lyrebird
The amazing and talented Lyrebird was discovered by John Wilson (one of Australia's first convicts) in 1788, ten years after the first fleet.
It became quite the fashion statement for ladies to wear the feathers of the superb lyrebird in their hats in the 1800's.
Many beautiful lyre birds were killed to satisfy this trend until new laws were passed to protect the species. The Lyrebird has been around for millions of years, fossils having been found dated to 15 million years ago.
This legendary Australian bird can be found in rain forest in Victoria and New South Wales. It was also introduced into Tasmania in the 19th century. There are two different species of Lyre birds
The Superb Lyrebird. The male is the third largest song bird with a length of 80 to 98 centimeters, (31.5 38.5 inches). The female is slightly smaller with a body measuring 74 to 84 centimeters, (29 to 33 inches).
The Albert's Lyrebird (named after Queen Victoria's Husband prince Albert) is a little bit smaller and can be found in Southern Queensland.
The Lyre Bird looks very similar to a large brown pheasant.
The male's tail is elaborate with beautiful curved feathers that when displayed during a courting ritual take on the look of a lyre, hence its name.
The female's and young male's tail does not have these ornate feathers.
The Lyre Bird lives on the moist forest floor during the day scrounging around for food such as small insects, spiders, worms,tiny grubs and some specialized seeds. At night it will roost in the protected tree tops.
The birds rarely move far and generally stay within in a home-radius of about 10 km.
The Superb Lyrebird song is legendary.
It is reported that 80% of the bird sounds are pure mimicry all combined to produce an amazing bird song. Each song individualistic to where the bird resides because of the unique sounds that it picks up.
The sounds can include chainsaws, car engines, cameras, other local birds from the area, dogs barking etc.
Play the video below and just see how amazing this legendary Australian lyrebird really is. This was captured wandering through the Healesville Sanctuary
Throughout the Dandenong Mountains you can hear the songs of the Australian Lyrebird and the legendary songbird is immortalized at the incredible William Rickett's Sanctuary
The bird is quite shy and is therefore quite difficult to detect. However you will always be made aware of its presence as the sounds that it makes are very loud and raucous. Truly an amazing Australian legend.
If you enjoy the bird kingdom then may I suggest these truly wonderful books supplied by Fishpond
Click the link for more information on the book
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Jan 20, 21 12:08 AM
The Maroondah Dam Park, one of the prettiest and most popular parks in Victoria, is situated just on the outskirts of beautiful Healesville.
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Please note that some links on this page are to companies that I have an affiliation with. By that I mean that if you purchase a product through them I receive a very small commission. This way of earning income is termed Monetization and it is a way for me to keep my site out here for you to enjoy. I will only affiliate with companies that I feel offer value for money and excellent back up service. These are Companies that I personally have used to purchase products for myself, my family and my friends. To learn more please refer to my Disclaimer page