Photo credit to William Bullimore

The amazing Lyrebird is an Australian bird that can perfectly impersonate the sounds and calls of other birds and animals that it hears in the woodlands and forests around it.

The Lyrebird has lived on Earth for about over 15 million years, as fossils of them have been found dating them as far back to this time.  They are indigenous to the rainforest areas of Victoria and New South Wales and can also be found in the neighboring country of Tasmania, where they were introduced in the 19th century.

There are only 2 species of Lyrebird and these are the Superb Lyrebird~Menura novaehollandiae which is one of the worlds 3rd largest songbirds and the Albert's Lyrebird.  The smaller Albert's Lyrebird~Menura alberti that was named after England's Prince Albert can generally be found in Southern Queensland.

The Lyrebirds feathers are brown in color with a lighter brown underside and they have dark brown and red feathers around their neck.  The male has 2 long feathers that develop along with 14 other feathers after the bird is 2 years old.  With these feathers he will spread and fan them out over his head in an impressive display to attract a mate.

When these 2 prominent feathers are spread out vertically, they resemble a musical instrument ' the Lyre' and it is from this that the birds name derives.

These are rather shy birds and are difficult to find and as a ground dwelling bird they prefer to run rather than fly away to conceal themselves at any sign of a threat, including people wandering too close. They will hide in burrows and will even run into old mineshafts to avoid any dangers.

The Youtube video of David Attenborough  and his camera team recording this bird is quite unique, even more so because of the wide and varied sounds that were recorded by the team that audibly shows off this remarkable birds talents.

The Lyrebird has the amazing capability to imitate almost any sounds that it hears, including, chainsaws, car alarms and electric camera shutters to name but a few.

Lyre birds have a remarkable plumage, its tail can be fanned out in a much similar way to the Peacock it does this when it wants to attract a mate.

The Lyre bird also makes a small clearing in the woodlands so that is can carry out one of its 'performances' of song and dance.  It is in this clearing too that the bird will go through many of its collection of sounds that it has heard and remembered.

Female lyre birds will lay a single egg in a nest that's low to the ground and incubate it for about 7 weeks until the chick hatches.  The mother Lyre bird will be a single parent, in that it raises the chick on its own, although the male still fetches food for them.

Lyre birds like to feed mainly on insects and earthworms but will also forage around for seeds and berries when they are available.  The Lyre bird will also dig around through undergrowth for other titbits.

The Lyrebird is a most amazing bird, one that I hoped you enjoyed reading about on this web page.