Benutzer:Liuthalas/Prachtstaffelschwanz

2010-05-06T15:11:42Z

Koolah: /* Taxonomy */ typo

{{Taxobox
| name = Superb Fairywren
| status = LC
| status_system = iucn3.1
| status_ref =<ref>{{IUCN2006|assessors=[[BirdLife International]]|year=2004|id=50687|title=Malurus cyaneus|downloaded=9 May 2006}}</ref>
| image = Male superb fairy wren.jpg
| image_width = 200px
| image_caption = Male in breeding plumage subspecies ''cyaneus''
|image_alt=a small long-tailed vivid pale blue and black bird perched among some grasslike vegetation
| image2 = Female superb fairy wren-edit1.jpg
| image2_width = 200px
| image2_caption = Female – Victorian High Country
|image2_alt=a small pale brown bird with a gaping orange beak, on twiglike foliage
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| phylum = [[Chordate|Chordata]]
| classis = [[Bird|Aves]]
| ordo = [[Passeriformes]]
| familia = [[Maluridae]]
| genus = ''[[Malurus]]''
| species = '''''M. cyaneus'''''
| binomial = ''Malurus cyaneus''
| binomial_authority = Ellis, 1782
| range_map=Dist blue wren.png
| range_map_width=200px
| range_map_caption= Superb Fairywren range<div>{{Legend2|#2BA7D7|''M. c. cyanochlamys''|border=1px solid #aaa}}; {{Legend2|#130882|''M. c. cyaneus''|border=1px solid #aaa}}</div>
| subdivision_ranks=[[Subspecies]]
| subdivision=
* ''M. c. cyaneus''
* ''M. c. cyanochlamys'' Sharpe, 1881
}}
The '''Superb Fairywren''' (''Malurus cyaneus''), also known as the '''Superb Blue-wren''' or colloquially as the '''Blue Wren''', is a [[passerine]] [[bird]] of the [[Maluridae]] family, common and familiar across south-eastern Australia. The species is sedentary and [[Territory (animal)|territorial]], also exhibiting a high degree of [[sexual dimorphism]]; the male in breeding plumage has a striking bright blue forehead, ear [[covert (feather)|coverts]], mantle, and tail, with a black mask and black or dark blue throat. Non-breeding males, females and juveniles are predominantly grey-brown in colour; this gave the early impression that males were polygamous as all dull-coloured birds were taken for females. Two subspecies are recognised: the larger and darker [[Tasmania]]n form ''cyaneus'' and the smaller and paler mainland form ''cyanochlamys''.

Like other fairywrens, the Superb Fairywren is notable for several peculiar behavioural characteristics; the birds are socially [[monogamous]] and sexually [[promiscuous]], meaning that although they form pairs between one male and one female, each partner will mate with other individuals and even assist in raising the young from such pairings. Male wrens pluck yellow petals and display them to females as part of a courtship display.

The Superb Fairywren can be found in almost any area that has at least a little dense undergrowth for shelter, including grasslands with scattered shrubs, moderately thick forest, woodland, heaths, and domestic [[garden]]s. It has adapted well to the urban environment and is common in suburban Sydney, [[Canberra]] and [[Melbourne]]. The Superb Fairywren mainly eats insects and supplements its diet with seeds.

==Taxonomy==
The Superb Fairywren is one of 12 species of the genus ''[[Malurus]]'', commonly known as fairywrens, found in Australia and lowland [[New Guinea]].<ref name = "Rowley143">Rowley and Russell, p. 143</ref> Within the genus, the Superb Fairywren's closest relative is the [[Splendid Fairywren]]; these two "Blue wrens" are also related to the [[Purple-crowned Fairywren]] of northwestern Australia.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Christidis L, Schodde R |year=1997|title=Relationships within the Australo-Papuan Fairy-wrens (Aves: Malurinae): an evaluation of the utility of allozyme data |journal=Australian Journal of Zoology |volume=45 |issue=2|pages=113–129 |doi=10.1071/ZO96068 |url=http://www.publish.csiro.au/?paper=ZO96068 (abstract) |accessdate=2007-09-20}}</ref>

William Anderson, surgeon and [[naturalist]] on [[James Cook|Captain James Cook's]] [[James_Cook#Third_voyage_.281776.E2.80.9379.29_and_death|third voyage]], collected the first Superb Fairywren specimen in 1777 while travelling off the coast of eastern Tasmania, in [[Bruny Island]]'s [[Adventure Bay]]. He named it ''Motacilla cyanea'' because its tail reminded him of the European [[Wagtail]]s of the genus ''[[Motacilla]]''. Anderson did not live to publish his findings, although his assistant William Ellis described the bird in 1782.<ref name="Rowley8"/> The genus ''Malurus'' was later described by [[Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot]] in 1816, giving the bird its current scientific name.<ref>{{cite book |last= Vieillot |first=Louis Pierre |title=Analyse d'une Nouvelle Ornithologie Elementaire |year= 1816 |page=69 |url=http://www.archive.org/details/vieillotsanalyse00viei |publisher= |location= }}</ref>

Shortly after the [[First Fleet]]'s arrival at [[Port Jackson]], Sydney, the bird gained the common name ''Superb Warbler''.<ref name = "Rowley145"/> In the 1920s came common names ''Wren'' and ''Wren-warbler''—both from its similarity to the European [[Wren]]—and ''Fairywren''.<ref name = "Rowley3">Rowley and Russell, p. 3</ref> The bird has also been called ''Mormon Wren'', a reference to observations of one blue-plumaged bird accompanied by many brown-plumaged birds, which were incorrectly assumed to be all female.<ref name = "Rowley8">Rowley and Russell, p. 8</ref> The [[Ngarrindjeri]] people of the [[Murray River]] and [[Coorong National Park|Coorong]] regions called it ''Waatji pulyeri'', meaning "little one of the ''waatji'' (lignum) bush",<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.aboriginaleducation.sa.edu.au/pages/Educators/Science/|title= Aboriginal perspectives in science|accessdate=2007-09-21 |author= Department of Education and Children's Services – Government of South Australia|year=2007 |work= Aboriginal Education & Employment Services |publisher= Department of Education and Children's Services – Government of South Australia}}</ref> and the [[Gunai]] called it ''Deeydgun'', meaning "little bird with long tail".<ref>{{cite book |author= Wesson S |title=Aboriginal flora and fauna names of Victoria: As extracted from early surveyors' reports |year=2001 |publisher=Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages |location= Melbourne |isbn=9-9579360-0-1 |url= http://www.vaclang.org.au/admin%5Cfile%5Ccontent9%5Cc7%5Cff.pdf|format=PDF |accessdate=2007-09-21}}</ref> Both it and the [[Variegated Fairywren]] were known as ''muruduwin'' the local [[Eora]] and [[Darug people|Darug]] inhabitants of the Sydney basin.<ref>{{cite book|author=Troy, Jakelin|year=1993|title=The Sydney language|publisher=Jakelin Troy| location=Canberra|isbn=0-646-11015-2|page=55}}</ref>

Like other fairywrens, the Superb Fairywren is unrelated to the true [[wren]]. It was previously classified as a member of the old world flycatcher family [[Muscicapidae]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Sharpe|first= Richard Bowdler |title= Catalogue of the Passeriformes, or perching birds, in the collection of the British museum. Cichlomorphae, part 1 |year=1879 |publisher=Trustees of the British Museum |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Sharpe|firt= Richard Bowdler |title= Catalogue of the Passeriformes, or perching birds, in the collection of the British museum. Cichlomorphae, part 4 |year=1883 |publisher=Trustees of the British Museum |location=London}}</ref> and later as a member of the warbler family [[Sylviidae]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Sharpe|firt= Richard Bowdler |title= A handlist of the genera and species of birds Vol. 4 |year=1903 |publisher=British Museum |location=London}}</ref> before being placed in the newly recognised [[Maluridae]] in 1975.<ref>{{Cite book | last = Schodde| firat= Richard | title = Interim List of Australian Songbirds: passerines | year = 1975 | publisher = [[Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union|RAOU]]|location = Melbourne |oclc=3546788}}</ref> More recently, [[DNA]] analysis has shown the Maluridae family to be related to the Meliphagidae ([[honeyeater]]s), and the [[Pardalotidae]] (pardalotes, scrubwrens, thornbills, gerygones and allies) in the large superfamily [[Meliphagoidea]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Barker |first=FK |coauthors= Barrowclough GF, Groth JG |year=2002 |title=A phylogenetic hypothesis for passerine birds; Taxonomic and biogeographic implications of an analysis of nuclear DNA sequence data |journal=Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B |volume=269 |pages=295–308 |doi=10.1098/rspb.2001.1883}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last= Barker|first=FK |coauthors=Cibois A, Schikler P, Feinstein J, Cracraft J |year=2004 |month= |title=Phylogeny and diversification of the largest avian radiation |journal=Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA |volume= 101|issue=30 |pages=11040–11045 |format=PDF |url=http://www.tc.umn.edu/~barke042/pdfs/Barker.et.al04.pdf |accessdate=2007-10-12|doi=10.1073/pnas.0401892101|pmid=15263073}}</ref>

===Subspecies===
Two subspecies are currently recognised, though future DNA studies may prompt reclassification.<ref name = "Rowley146">Rowley and Russell, p. 146</ref>

*'''''M. c. cyaneus''''', the nominate subspecies described in 1782,<ref name ="Ellis1782">{{cite book |last=Ellis |first=WW |title=An authentic narrative of a voyage performed by Captain Cook and Capt. Clarke in His Majesty's Ships Resolution and Discovery during the years 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779 and 1780: Vol 1 |year=1782 |publisher=G. Robinson, J. Sewell and J. Debrett |location=London}}</ref> is found throughout Tasmania and on the Bass Strait Islands. Birds are larger and darker than the mainland subspecies, with males having a deeper azure blue coloration. Those of [[King Island (Tasmania)|King Island]] were first described as a separate species ''elizabethae'' by A.J. Campbell in 1901,<ref>{{cite journal |last= Campbell|first=AJ |year=1901|title=On a new species of blue wren from King Island, Bass Strait |journal=Ibis |volume=8 |issue=1 |pages=10–11|doi=10.1111/j.1474-919X.1901.tb07517.x}}</ref> with a deeper blue colour still. Birds of [[Flinders Island]] are of intermediate colour between the King Island and Tasmanian forms.<ref name = "Rowley145">Rowley and Russell, p. 145</ref> Schodde in his 1982 review reclassified ''elizabethae'' under ''cyaneus''.<ref>{{Cite book | author = Schodde R | title = The Fairy-wrens: A Monograph of the Maluridae | year = 1982 | publisher = Landsdowne|location = Melbourne| isbn=0-7018-1051-3}} </ref>

*'''''M. c. cyanochlamys''''', described by Richard Sharpe in 1881,<ref>{{cite journal |last= Sharpe|first=RB |year=1881|title=no title |journal=Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London |volume=1881 |page=788}}</ref> is found on mainland Australia; in general, birds are smaller and paler than those of Tasmania, with Queensland male birds bearing a pale silvery blue crown, ear tufts and mantle.<ref name = "Rowley145"/>

===Evolutionary history===
In his 1982 monograph, ornithologist [[Richard Schodde]] proposed a southern origin for the common ancestor of the Superb and Splendid Fairywrens. At some time in the past it was split into southwestern (Splendid) and southeastern (Superb) enclaves. As the southwest was dryer than the southeast, once conditions were more favourable, the Splendid forms were more able to spread into inland areas. In the east, the Superb Fairywren spread into Tasmania during a glacial period when the sea level was low and the island was connected with the rest of the continent via a landbridge. What gave rise to subspecies ''cyaneus'' became isolated as the sea levels rose. The Bass Strait forms were isolated from Tasmania but more recently and so their subspecific status was not maintained. Further molecular studies may result in this hypothesis being modified.<ref name ="Schodde82">Schodde R (1982) ''The fairywrens: a monograph of the Maluridae''. Lansdowne Editions, Melbourne.</ref>

==Description==

The Superb Fairywren is 14 cm (5.5 in) long<ref name = "sdt93"/> and weighs 8–13 g (0.28–0.46 oz),<ref name ="Rowley146">Rowley and Russell, p. 146</ref> with males on average slightly larger than females.<ref name ="Rowley39">Rowley and Russell, p. 39</ref> The average tail length is 5.9 cm (2⅓ in),<ref name ="Rowley33">Rowley and Russell, p. 33</ref> among the shortest in the genus.<ref name ="Rowley36">Rowley and Russell, p. 36</ref> Averaging {{convert|9|mm|in|1|abbr=on}} in subspecies ''cyaneus'' and {{convert|8|mm|in|1|abbr=on}} in subspecies ''cyanochlamys'',<ref name = "Rowley146"/> the bill is relatively long, narrow and pointed and wider at the base. Wider than it is deep, the bill is similar in shape to those of other birds that feed by probing for or picking insects off their environs.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Wooller RD|year=1984|title=Bill size and shape in honeyeaters and other small insectivorous birds in Western Australia |journal=Australian Journal of Zoology |volume=32 |pages=657–62 |doi=10.1071/ZO9840657}}</ref>

Like other fairywrens, the Superb Fairywren is notable for its marked [[sexual dimorphism]], males adopting a highly visible breeding plumage of brilliant iridescent blue contrasting with black and grey-brown. The brightly coloured crown and ear tufts are prominently featured in breeding displays.<ref name ="Rowley4344">Rowley and Russell, pp. 43–44</ref> The breeding male has a bright blue forehead, ear coverts, mantle and tail, brown wings, and black throat, eye band, breast and bill. Females, immatures, and non-breeding males are a plain fawn colour with a lighter underbelly and a fawn (females and immatures) or dull greyish blue (males) tail. The bill is brown in females and juveniles<ref name = "sdt93">{{cite book | author = Simpson K, Day N, Trusler P | title = Field Guide to the Birds of Australia | publisher = Viking O'Neil | year = 1993 | location = Ringwood, Victoria | page = 392 | isbn = 0-670-90478-3}}</ref> and black in males after their first winter.<ref name ="Rowley144">Rowley and Russell, p. 144</ref> Immature males moult into breeding plumage the first breeding season after hatching, though incomplete moulting sometimes leaves residual brownish plumage that takes another year or two to perfect.<ref name ="Rowley45">Rowley and Russell, p. 45</ref> Both sexes moult in autumn after breeding, with males assuming an eclipse non-breeding plumage. They moult again into nuptial plumage in winter or spring.<ref name ="Rowley144"/> Breeding males' blue plumage, particularly the ear-coverts, is highly [[iridescent]] because of the flattened and twisted surface of the [[barbule]]s.<ref name ="Rowley44">Rowley and Russell, p. 44</ref> The blue plumage also reflects [[ultraviolet]] light strongly, and so may be even more prominent to other fairywrens, whose colour vision extends into this part of the [[Electromagnetic spectrum|spectrum]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Bennett ATD, Cuthill IC |year=1994|title=Ultraviolet vision in birds: what is its function? |journal=Vision Research |volume=34|issue=11 |pages=1471–78| doi=10.1016/0042-6989(94)90149-X| pmid=8023459}}</ref>

Vocal communication among Superb Fairywrens is used primarily for communication between birds in a social group and for advertising and [[mobbing]], or defending a territory.<ref name ="Rowley63">Rowley and Russell, p. 63</ref> The basic, or Type I, song is a 1–4 second high-pitched reel consisting of 10–20 short elements per second; it is sung by both males and females.<ref name ="Rowley656">Rowley and Russell, pp. 65–66</ref> Males also possess a peculiar song-like Type II vocalization, which is given in response to the calls of predatory birds, commonly [[Grey Butcherbird]]s (''Cracticus torquatus'').<ref>Langmore NE, Mulder RA. (1992): A novel context for bird vocalization: predator calls prompt male singing in the kleptogamous superb fairy-wren, ''Malurus cyaneus''. ''[[Ethology (journal)|Ethology]]'' 90'''(2)''':143–153.</ref> The purpose of this behaviour, which does not elicit a response from other nearby wrens, remains unknown. It is not a warning call, but in fact gives away the location of the vocalizing male to the predator. It may serve to announce male fitness, but this is far from certain.<ref name ="Rowley68">Rowley and Russell, p. 68</ref> Superb Fairywrens' alarm call is a series of brief sharp ''chit''s, universally given and understood by small birds in response to predators. Females also emit a ''purr'' while incubating.<ref name ="Rowley146"/>

== Various views and plumages ==
<center><gallery perrow=4 widths=160px heights=120px>
Image:Superb fairy wren2 LiquidGhoul.jpg|Juvenile Superb Fairywren subspecies ''cyanochlamys''
Image:Malurus cyaneus cyaneus female.jpg|Adult females have a red-orange ring of flesh around their eyes subspecies ''cyaneus''
Image:Superb fairy wren.jpg|Male vocalizing subspecies ''cyanochlamys''
File:Immature male superb fairy wren moulting.jpg|First-year male starting to moult into breeding plumage subspecies ''cyaneus''
</gallery></center>

==Distribution and habitat==
The Superb Fairywren is common throughout most of the relatively wet and fertile south-eastern corner of the continent, from the south-east of [[South Australia]] (including [[Kangaroo Island]] and Adelaide) and the tip of the [[Eyre Peninsula]], through all of [[Victoria, Australia|Victoria]], [[Tasmania]], coastal and sub-coastal [[New South Wales]] and Queensland, through the [[Brisbane]] area and extending inland – north to the [[Dawson River (Queensland)|Dawson River]] and west to [[Blackall, Queensland|Blackall]]; it is a common bird in the suburbs of Sydney, [[Melbourne]] and [[Canberra]].<ref name = "Rowley146"/> It is found in wooded areas, generally with plenty of undergrowth, and has also adapted to urban existence and can be found in gardens and urban parks as long as there is an undergrowth of native plants nearby.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Parsons H, French K, Major RE |year=2008 |month=October |title= The vegetation requirements of Superb Fairy-wrens (''Malurus cyaneus'') in non-urban edge and urbanised habitats |journal=Emu |volume=108 |issue=4 |pages=283–91 |doi=10.1071/MU07060 |url=http://www.publish.csiro.au/?paper=MU07060 |accessdate=2008-10-24}}</ref> Lantana (''[[Lantana camara]]''), a prolific weed in Australia, has also been beneficial in providing shelter in disturbed areas,<ref name = "Rowley146">Rowley and Russell, p. 146</ref> as has the introduced and invasive [[blackberry]] (''Rubus'' spp.)<ref>{{cite journal |author=Nias RC |year=1984 |month= |title=Territory quality and group size in the Superb Fairywren ''Malurus cyaneus''|journal=Emu |volume=84 |issue= |pages=178–80}}</ref> Unlike other fairywrens, it appears to benefit from the urban environment and has out-competed the introduced [[House Sparrow]] (''Passer domesticus'') in one study on the grounds of the [[Australian National University]] in Canberra.<ref name = "Rowley137">Rowley and Russell, p. 137</ref> Colonies of wrens can be found in [[Hyde Park, Sydney|Hyde Park]] and the [[Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney|Royal Botanic Gardens]] in Sydney's urbanized centre.<ref>{{cite book |last=Roberts |first=Peter |title=Birdwatcher's Guide to the Sydney Region |year=1993|page=131 |publisher=Kangaroo Press |location=Kenthurst, New South Wales |isbn=0-86417-565-5}}</ref> It is not found in dense forest nor in alpine environments.<ref name = "Rowley1478">Rowley and Russell, pp. 147–48</ref> Forestry plantations of pine (''[[Pinus]]'' spp.) and eucalypts are also unsuitable as they lack undergrowth.<ref name ="Rowley134">Rowley and Russell, p. 134</ref>

==Behaviour==
[[Image:Superb wren.jpg|thumb|Male in breeding plumage with grasshopper subspecies ''cyanochlamys''|alt=closeup of a small long-tailed vivid pale blue and black bird holding a grasshopper in its mouth and perched on a wire fence]]
Like all fairywrens, the Superb Fairywren is an active and restless feeder, particularly on open ground near shelter, but also through the lower foliage. Movement is a series of jaunty hops and bounces,<ref name = "row42">Rowley and Russell, p. 42</ref> with its balance assisted by a proportionally large tail, which is usually held upright, and rarely still. The short, rounded wings provide good initial lift and are useful for short flights, though not for extended jaunts.<ref name = "row41">Rowley and Russell, p. 41</ref> During spring and summer, birds are active in bursts through the day and accompany their foraging with song. Insects are numerous and easy to catch, which allows the birds to rest between forays. The group often shelters and rests together during the heat of the day. Food is harder to find during winter and they are required to spend the day foraging continuously.<ref name ="row612">Rowley and Russell, pp. 61–62</ref>

The Superb Fairywren is a [[cooperative breeding]] species, with pairs or groups of 3–5 birds maintaining and defending small [[Territory (animal)|territories]] year-round.<ref name = "Rowley65">{{cite journal |last=Rowley |first=Ian |year=1965 |month= |title=The Life History of the Superb Blue Wren |journal=Emu |volume=64 |issue= |pages=251–97}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Nias RC, Ford HA |year=1992 |month= |title=The Influence of group size and habitat on reproductive success in the Superb Fairy-wren ''Malurus cyaneus''|journal=Emu |volume=92 |issue= |pages=238–43}}</ref> The group consists of a social pair with one or more male or female helper birds that were hatched in the territory, though they may not necessarily be the offspring of the main pair. These birds assist in defending the territory and feeding and rearing the young.<ref name = "row99">Rowley and Russell, p. 99</ref> Birds in a group roost side-by-side in dense cover as well as engaging in mutual preening.<ref name = "Rowley65"/>

Major nest predators include [[Australian Magpie]]s ''(Gymnorhina tibicen)'', [[butcherbird]]s (''Cracticus'' spp.), [[Laughing Kookaburra]] ''(Dacelo novaeguineae)'', [[currawong]]s (''Strepera'' spp.), [[crow]]s and [[raven]]s (''Corvus'' spp.), [[shrike-thrush]]es (''Colluricincla'' spp.) as well as introduced mammals such as the [[Red Fox]] (''Vulpes vulpes''), [[cat]] and [[Black Rat]] ''(Rattus rattus)''.<ref name = "row121">Rowley and Russell, p. 121</ref> Superb Fairywrens may utilise a 'Rodent-run' display to distract predators from nests with young birds. The head, neck and tail are lowered, wings held out and feathers fluffed as the bird runs rapidly and voices a continuous alarm call.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Rowley |first=Ian |year=1962|title='Rodent-run' distraction display by a passerine, the Superb Blue Wren ''Malurus cyaneus'' (L.) |journal=Behaviour |volume=19 |pages=170–76|doi=10.1163/156853961X00240}}</ref>

===Diet===
[[Image:Superb Wren female444.jpg|left|thumb|Female with grasshopper subspecies ''cyanochlamys''|alt=a small brown bird with orange eye-ring and a long tail holding a grasshopper in its bill while sitting on a piece of wire]]
Superb Fairywrens are predominantly [[insectivorous]]. They eat a wide range of small creatures (mostly insects such as ants, grasshoppers, [[shield bug]]s, flies, [[weevil]]s and various larvae) as well as small quantities of seeds, flowers, and fruit.<ref name = "Rowley65"/><ref>{{cite book |author=Barker RD, Vestkens WJM|title=Food of Australian Birds: Vol. 2 – Passerines |year=1990|page=557|publisher= CSIRO|location= |isbn= 0-643-05115-5 }}</ref> Their foraging, termed 'hop-searching', occurs on the ground or in shrubs that are less than two metres high.<ref name = "Rowley65"/> Because this foraging practice renders them vulnerable to predators, birds tend to stick fairly close to cover and forage in groups. During winter, when food may be scarce, ants are an important 'last resort' food, constituting a much higher proportion of the diet.<ref name = "row4952">Rowley and Russell, pp. 49–52</ref> Nestlings, in contrast to adult birds, are fed a diet of larger items such as caterpillars and grasshoppers.<ref name = "row53">Rowley and Russell, p. 53</ref>

===Courtship===
[[Image:Superb Fairy-wren facefan hunter 1 smaller.jpg|thumb|right|Male with face fan display subspecies ''cyanochlamys''|alt=a small long-tailed vivid pale blue and black bird standing on the ground facing the camera, with its cheek feathers puffed out]]
Several courtship displays by Superb Fairywren males have been recorded. The 'sea horse flight', named for its [[seahorse]]-like undulations, is one such display. During this exaggerated flight, the male—with his neck extended and his head feathers erect—tilts his body from horizontal to vertical, and descends slowly and springs upwards by rapidly beating his wings after alighting on the ground.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Loaring WH |year=1948 |title=Splendid Wren with flower petal |journal=[[Emu (journal)|Emu]] |volume=48 |pages=163–64}}</ref> The 'face fan' display may be seen as a part of aggressive or sexual display behaviours; it involves the flaring of the blue ear tufts by erecting the feathers.<ref name ="Rowley76">Rowley and Russell, p. 76</ref>

During the reproductive season, males of this and other fairywren species pluck yellow petals, which contrast with their plumage, and show them to female fairywrens. The petals often form part of a courtship display and are presented to a female in the male —fairywren's own or another territory. Males sometimes show petals to females in other territories even outside the breeding season, presumably to promote themselves.<ref name ="Rowley75">Rowley and Russell, p. 75</ref> Fairywrens are socially [[monogamy|monogamous]] and sexually [[promiscuous]]: pairs will bond for life,<ref name ="Rowley79">Rowley and Russell, p. 79</ref> though both males and females will regularly [[copulation|mate]] with other individuals; a proportion of young will have been fathered by males from outside the group. Young are often raised not by the pair alone, but with other males who also mated with the pair's female assisting.<ref name ="Rowley89">Rowley and Russell, p. 89</ref>

===Breeding===
[[Image:Superb Fairy Wrens - Northern Beaches 2006 018b.JPG|thumb|right|Female with juvenile begging for food, Northern Beaches, Sydney|alt=on the left, a small brown bird with orange eye-ring and a long tail holding a moth, while at its right another similar bird has an open mouth begging for food]]
Breeding occurs from spring through to late summer; the nest is a round or domed structure made of loosely woven grasses and [[spider web]]s, with an entrance in one side generally close to the ground, under 1 m (3 ft), and in thick vegetation. Two or more broods may be laid in an extended breeding season. A clutch of three or four matte white eggs with reddish-brown splotches and spots, measuring 12 x 16 mm (0.45 x 0.6 in).<ref>{{cite book | last = Beruldsen | first = G | title = Australian Birds: Their Nests and Eggs | publisher = self | year = 2003 | location = Kenmore Hills, Qld | page = 280 | doi = | isbn = 0-646-42798-9}}</ref> The eggs are incubated for 14 days, after which they hatch within 24 hours. Newborn chicks are blind, red and featherless, though quickly darken as feathers grow. Their eyes open by day five or six and are fully feathered by day 10. All group members feed and remove [[fecal sac]]s for 10–14 days. Fledglings are able to feed themselves by day 40 but remain in the family group as helpers for a year or more before moving to another group or assuming a dominant position in the original group. In this role they feed and care for subsequent broods and repel cuckoos or predators.<ref name="row149">Rowley and Russell, p. 149</ref> Superb Fairywrens also commonly play host to the brood parasite [[Horsfield's Bronze-Cuckoo]] ''(Chrysococcyx basalis)'' and, less commonly, the [[Shining Bronze-Cuckoo]] ''(C. lucidus)'' and [[Fan-tailed Cuckoo]] ''(Cacomantis flabelliformis)''.<ref>Rowley and Russell, pp. 118–19</ref>

==Cultural depictions==
The Superb Fairywren is used as an emblem by the [[Bird Observation & Conservation Australia]].<ref>{{cite web
| author = Bird Observation & Conservation Australia | authorlink = Bird Observation & Conservation Australia | title = Home Page – Bird Observation & Conservation Australia | publisher = Bird Observation & Conservation Australia | year = 2005 | url = http://www.birdobservers.org.au/ | accessdate =2007-10-13}}</ref> On 12 August 1999, a Superb Fairywren was mistakenly illustrated for an [[Australia Post]] 45c pre-stamped envelope meant to depict a [[Splendid Fairywren]].<ref>{{cite journal |author= Australia Post Philatelic Group |year=1999 |month=October-December |title=Note:Birds error |journal=Stamp Bulletin |issue=252 |page=17 |accessdate=2007-10-13}}</ref> Called the Blue Wren as it was then known, it had previously featured on a 2s.5d. stamp, released in 1964, which was discontinued with the advent of decimal currency.<ref>{{cite web | last = Breckon | first = Richard | title = Australia's Decimal Currency Stamps 1966 | work = Gibbons Stamp Monthly | publisher = Stanley Gibbons Ltd | month = February | year = 2006 | url = http://www.gibbonsstampmonthly.com/story.asp?storycode=2423&preview=1 | accessdate = 2007-10-13}}</ref>

[[File:Superb fairy-wren95.ogg|thumb|300px|left|Samsonvale Cemetery, SE Queensland]]
 

==Notes==
{{clear}}
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==References==
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book |last=Rowley |first=Ian |coauthors=Russell, Eleanor |title=Bird Families of the World:Fairy-wrens and Grasswrens |year=1997 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=Oxford |isbn=0-19-854690-4}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{commons|Malurus cyaneus|Superb Fairywren}}
* [http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/superb-fairy-wren-malurus-cyaneus Superb Fairy-wren videos, photos and sounds] on the Internet Bird Collection
* [http://www.austmus.gov.au/factsheets/superb_fairy_wren.htm Factsheets: Superb Fairy-wren] – Australian Museum online
* [http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/npws.nsf/Content/Make+your+garden+friendlier+for+superb+fairy-wrens Make your garden friendlier for superb fairy-wrens] NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service (incl. call)
* [http://tolweb.org/tree?group=Meliphagoidea&contgroup=Oscines Meliphagoidea] – Highlighting relationships of [[Maluridae]] on Tree Of Life Web Project
* [http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16011-multilingual-birds-learn-foreign-alarm-calls.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news Fairy-wrens are able to learn alarm calls from other species], ''New Scientist'', 12 November 2008

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Superb Fairywren}}
[[Category:Malurus]]
[[Category:Birds of South Australia]]
[[Category:Birds of Tasmania]]

[[cs:Modropláštník nádherný]]
[[da:Sortstrubet alfesmutte]]
[[es:Malurus cyaneus]]
[[fr:Mérion superbe]]
[[hu:Lazúr tündérmadár]]
[[ja:ルリオーストラリアムシクイ]]
[[pl:Chwostka szafirowa]]
[[pt:Malurus cyaneus]]
[[fi:Sinikurkkumaluri]]
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