Gilbert’s Whistler (Pachycephala inornata)

Habitat: Despite being a Mallee bird, Gilbert’s Whistler can be found in small pockets of mixed shrubbery—mostly Melaleuca—where they form dense stands. An established pair seems to occupy the same territory all year round. Usually nestled under shrubbery or just a few meters above the ground, Gilbert’s Whistlers feed under the cover of shrubbery. Often, they drop to the ground to poke around in litter, searching for insects—beetles, weevils, and particularly caterpillars—and hop and glean about among the branches.

Identification: Male: upper parts dark gray with brown suffusion, head slightly darker; lores and area around eyes black. There is a great deal of rufous pigment in the throat. There are faint dark streaks on the breasts and flanks, grading to white or ochreish buff undertails and belly. The eyes are rubies. Black is the color of the bill. Grey is the color of the feet.

Female: The female bird has a grayish-white throat and a mid-grey face. There is a grey-brown tint to the bill.

IMMATURES: As a female, the ventral streaking is stronger and the eyes are browner. Juveniles wash russet overhead, back, and breast, molting out within a month or so of fledging. Tail feathers are pointed.

Voice: Quiet and retiring are the characteristics of Gilbert’s Whistlers. It is very rare for males to sing during the year, but they sing more actively during the breeding season. The song is delivered from a perch but is often delivered close to the ground, well under cover. Low, in-drawn, and plaintive, the call is low and in-drawn.

SONG: The bird song is rich, resonant, and resonant far and wide. Repeated swelling whistles pew-pew-pew-pew-pew, breaking into explosive er-whit er-whit, or e-chop; also explosive jok-jok-jok-jok, repeated in a sequence of 10-15 by males

NESTING & BREEDING: Breeding and nesting take place between September and December. Both sexes contribute to nest construction and feeding, but females are mostly responsible for incubation. Despite their immature plumage, males can breed. The nest consists of bark strips, grasses, and twigs, loosely bound with cobwebs, wool, and vine tendrils, lined with bark strips and rootlets, about 13 cm in diameter and 10 cm high, placed in dense upright forks of shrubs or low trees.

Eggs: two to four; cream-buff spotted with brown-black and lavender, often in a zone at the larger end; oval, about 23 x 17 mm. Females are primarily responsible for incubation.

DISTRIBUTION: Mallee and associated woodland across the south, from inland southwestern Australia, narrowly around the Nullarbor Plain east to the heathy upper reaches of the Lachlan River, NSW.

FLIGHT: Gilbert’s Whistler Flight features low and undulating movements.

OTHER NAMES: The bird is also known as the Black-lored Whistler, Red-throated Whistler, and Gilbert’s Thickhead. Gilbert’s Whistler is named after John Gilbert, an early Australian ornithologist and collector of John Gould.

SIZE: The size of Gilbert’s Whistler is about 190–200 mm.

Related Reading: The Shy Red-lored Whistler