Australian logrunner

Orthonyx temminckii

Common name:
Australian logrunner (en); corre-troncos-australiano (pt); orthonyx de Temminck (fr); colaespina de Temminck (es); Australien-stachelschwanzflöter (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Orthonychidae


Range:
This species is endemic to eastern Australia, being found from New South Wales to Queensland.


Size:
These birds are 18-21 cm long. Males tend to be larger than females, weighing 58-70 g, while the females weigh 46-58 g.


Habitat:
They are mostly found in dense rainforests and in moist scrublands along forest edges, but can also be found in temperate forests and scrublands.


Diet:
Australian logrunners forage on the ground, taking adult and larval insects and other small soil invertebrates.


Breeding:
They breed in the austral Autumn and Winter, in April-September. The female build the nest, a globular dome made of twigs, sticks, dry leaves and green moss, placed on the ground or sometimes in low vines or on a fallen log or a stump. The she lays 2 white eggs which are incubated for 21-25 days. The chicks are mostly fed by the female, but the male is the one who collects and brings the food to the nest. The chicks fledge 16-18 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least concern)
This species has a relatively large breeding range and is described as common in the north of its range, becoming rarer towards the south. This population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat loss and degradation.