Anthus australis
The Australian Pipit, Anthus australis, is a small, streaky brown ground-dwelling songbird widely distributed across Australia and New Guinea, and introduced to New Zealand. Measuring approximately 15-16 cm in length with a wingspan of 25-28 cm and weighing 20-25 grams, it presents a generally cryptic appearance with heavily streaked upperparts, a pale supercilium, and off-white underparts featuring fine streaking on the breast. Its most distinctive field marks include its upright posture, ch...
Found in open country, including grasslands, agricultural fields, sparse woodlands, coastal dunes, and urban parks, typically at low to moderate elevations.
Primarily insectivorous, feeding on a wide range of invertebrates such as grasshoppers, beetles, spiders, and caterpillars, supplemented with small seeds.
Australian Pipits are largely diurnal, spending most of their time foraging on the ground, often roosting in low vegetation or on the ground at night. Their foraging strategy involves walking or running across open ground, pausing to pick insects and seeds from the surface. Males engage in elabor...
The Australian Pipit is widely distributed across mainland Australia, Tasmania, and parts of southern New Guinea, and is a common introduced species in New Zealand. Within Australia, it occurs in almost all terrestrial habitats from coastal areas to inland arid zones, though it is less common in ...
Least Concern
- The Australian Pipit possesses a remarkably long hind claw, a characteristic adaptation for gripping the ground and walking over uneven terrain, common among pipits. - Its common name, 'Pipit,' is onomatopoeic, derived from its distinctive 'peeping' or 'pipit-pipit' call. - For many years, it w...