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Superb Lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae), family Menuridae, order Passeriformes, Dandinong Forest, Melbourne, Australia

This bird is renowned for its ability to accurately mimic a wide variety of sounds, such as birds and other animals, humans, and mechanical and electric noises.

photograph by Savita Shiggaon

#lyrebird #menura #menuridae #passeriformes #bird #ornithology #animals #nature #australia

Menura novaehollandiae by David Cook.

#bird #animals #nature #biology #Passeriformes #Menuridae #Menura #Menura novaehollandiae

Menura

Superb Lyrebird, by Fir0002, GFDL 1.2

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Genus Name: Menura

Status: Extant

First Described: 1801

Described By: Latham

Classification: Dinosauria, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostylia, Ornithothoraces, Euornithes, Ornithuromorpha, Ornithurae, Neornithes, Neognathae, Neoaves, Inopinaves, Telluraves, Australaves, Eufalconimorphae, Psittacopasserae, Passeriformes, Eupasseres, Passeri, Menurides, Menuridae

Referred Species: M. novaehollandiae, M. alberti, M. tyawanoides (extinct)

Here we are - the Lyrebird, one of the most fascinating songbirds out there. Both living species are distinguished by their ability to mimic sounds - not just other birds, but things like car alarms and chainsaws and camera shutters - during their mating dances. They are also notable for their extensive plumage, especially the males, that are used as display structures during these mating dances. They also have a notable extinct species, Menura tyawanoides, known from the Riversleigh fauna of Queensland, Australia. It lived about 23 million years ago, in the Aquitanian age of the early Miocene of the Neogene, meaning that this genus has been around for at least that long.

M. tyawanoides by Ashley Patch on @palaeoshley

M. tyawanoides also indicates that passerines underwent extreme diversification in Australia - if not originally evolving somewhere in Oceania specifically, given the presence of very early derived Passeriens, the New Zealand wren, in New Zealand to this day. M. tyawanoides was a part of a large, complex community of mammals, reptiles, and birds, all showing a sort of intermediate stage in Cenozoic evolution - between the early forms of the earlier part of the eon and the modern forms we see today. M. tyawanoides shows an intermediate step in the evolution of the distinct Lyrebird from the general small perching passerine form - it is smaller than living lyrebirds, indicating that it evolved from smaller ancestors, and large size was a hallmark of Lyrebird evolution. Whether or not it could mimic like its modern relatives, however, is difficult to tell from the current fossil evidence, which is just part of the wing. It probably was around 60 centimeters or so long. More modern-esque Lyrebirds are known from as old as 15 million years ago.

Superb Lyrebird, by Melburnian, CC BY 2.5

Modern Lyrebirds were, indeed, thought to be weird pheasants, given their extensive tail plumage, poor flight ability, and large size. However, when the first chicks of the Lyrebirds were found, they were found to be altricial - meaning helpless ugly lint dinosaurs, rather than the puffy cute chicks found with pheasants and other fowl. Currently they are thought to be near-Oscines, so close to the group containing Corvidans and Passeridans, but not actually in that group. Their closest living relatives are the Scrubbirds, which look like normal passerines - and they’re extremely rare birds in Australia, so it’s difficult to study them. There are two modern species of Lyrebird - M. novaehollandiae, the Superb Lyrebird, and M. alberti, Albert’s Lyrebird, which is much rarer.

Superb Lyrebird by J. Gould and E. Gould, in the Public Domain

The Superb Lyrebird is found in southeastern Australia, from Victoria to Queensland, feeding mainly on small invertebrates, and it is thriving throughout its range, making it “least concern” in terms of environmental conservation. The males are about 100 centimeters long and the females are about 76 to 80 centimeters long; only certain types of ravens are heavier and only the black sicklebill is longer. The long, distinctive tail has sixteen feathers, with the outermost ones looking like the shape of a lyre, lending the bird it sname. The male inverts the tail over its head during courtship, in order to display the plumage. Females and juveniles, on the other hand, blend in more with the forest floor.

By fir0002, GFDL 1.2

The Superb Lyrebird breeds mainly in the winter, living solitarily otherwise during the year, though young birds live in small groups. Males sing half an hour before sunrise and mimic a huge variety of sounds, though female Lyrebirds can sing as well. They can mimic things such as chainsaws, car alarms, camera shutters, dogs barking, music, ringtones, and even voices. This has made these birds an interesting lesson in the vocal capabilities of birds across both the passerine group and the parrot group - where mimicry is found the most. It is important to note, however, that most of the extreme mimicry of manmade objects tends to happen to birds in captivity.

From BBC Wildlife

The Superb Lyrebird mates promiscuously - adult females and males defend separate territories and females care for the young alone, trying out so to speak several males before picking one to father her young (though it’s possible that female Lyrebirds mate more than once). They lay one egg and then build domed nest over the eggs, camouflaging with ferns and moss. The chick takes nine months to reach independence, during this time it is rather helpless. The birds forage in the eucalyptus forests, which help to reduce litter and reduce the frequency of forest fires, making the lyrebirds important parts of the environment.

Albert’s Lyrebird, by Tony Castro, CC BY-SA 4.0

Albert’s Lyrebird lives in a much smaller range, along the state border of New South Wales and Queensland, in a small subtropical rainforest. It doesn’t have lyre-shaped feathers found in its cousin, and it is unfortunately near threatened in terms of its conservation. In fact, it has one of the smallest ranges of any bird in Australia. The male does have a different tail, with a central pair of long ribbon like feathers, more filamentary feathers along it, and a webbed pair of feathers on the outside as well. The female is shorter and simpler, with juveniles once again most similar to the females.

Female Albert’s Lyrebird by Peter Ellis, CC BY SA 3.0

Albert’s Lyrebird is also able to mimic, though its mimicry range is much more reduced than the Superb Lyrebird, mimicking a smaller range of bird species. It can make a wide range of deep and high pitched and harsh sounds, and even mimic the dingo, and it sings for many hours of the day during the breeding season. The birds also call to each other with a shriek when alarmed. The males also make little stages with a mound of ground, in order to display to females while mating. The females nest beneath the canopy of the forest, and the females make dome-shaped nests like their cousins, that look like lumps of debris, housing once again a single egg. Unlike their cousins, the young are mostly independent at about five weeks of age. The species feeds mainly on insects found in moist leaf litter, scratching and pecking around their rainforest habitat. All in all, an extremely fascinating group of birds.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyrebird

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menura_tyawanoides

https://spinops.blogspot.com/2018/02/menura-tyawanoides.html

http://fossilworks.org/bridge.pl?a=taxonInfo&taxon_no=182710

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superb_lyrebird

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert%27s_lyrebird

MENURA // THIBAULT CAUVIN // LACANAU [rec+mix]

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This Is a MASTERPIECE. . FOLLOW @rob.cavallo for more! • • • • • Full Song on his youtube!! #lyrebird #menura #lyre #speech #speechcomposing #imitatingnature #guitar #ElectricGuitar #guitarist #guitarvideo #guitarsolo #guitarperformance #Mastersofshred #dreamtheater #johnpetrucci #carbomb #rock #nature #naturefunny #funnynature #prog #progmetal #progrock #funnyvideo #viralvideo #fender #gibson #stratocaster #music (presso Amazon River, Brazil) https://www.instagram.com/p/B5GaQM1F1-Q/?igshid=klx15532vu2y

MENURA // ANNE KOECHLIN // LA TOUR CHEVALEAU [real]

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MENURA // CUMBIA Y CARDON // LES SERANS [real]

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MENURA // NYCKELS // LE VILLAGE DE BAZEMONT [real]

#menura #réalisateur sonore #musique traditionnelle #réalisation