Lyrebird

Lyrebirds are covered with brown feathers.

Lyrebirds live in forests and woodland in Australia.

Lyrebirds eat insects, spiders, beetles and worms.

Male lyrebirds can copy many sounds.

Lyrebirds belong to a group of birds called passiforms. There are 2 species (kinds) of lyrebird, the Superb lyrebird, about the size of a rooster, and Albert's lyrebird, which is the smaller of the two. Albert's lyrebird is the rarer of the two, and doesn't have the same tail feathers as the superb lyrebird.

The lyrebird gets its name because of the tail of the male bird. It is shaped like a musical stringed instrument called a lyre when he raises it above his head. The male carries the tail low but raises it above its head to show off to females during the mating season. The tail can be as long as 60 centimetres when the male is fully grown at about 8 years old.

To court a female, the male makes several mounds of earth as performance platforms around his territory. Then he dances and sings on the mounds. He sings his own sounds, and also imitates sounds of the forest and other sounds he has heard, even chainsaws, cars and cameras. Several females will be attracted to his performances.

Lyrebirds have mostly brown feathers and although they have wings, they don't often fly. They move about the forests on foot, running and jumping quickly on their short legs. They have four claws on each leg. At night they roost in trees.

Lyrebirds have long, pointed bills which they use to catch worm, spiders, beetles and insects.

After mating with a male, a female lays one egg in a four metre high nest built on the ground or around the stump of a tree or fern. The egg hatches in about six weeks and the young lyrebird stays in the nest for about six weeks. The female feeds her young.

Lyrebirds are a protected species. Albert's lyrebird is classified as Vulnerable (the stage before endangered). The Superb lyrebird is not threatened.

Acknowledge this source in your bibliography like this:
Lyrebird (2000). [Online], Available: www.kidcyber.com.au

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updated May 2007