mallee emuwren Stipiturus mallee

Tiny buff-brown bird with enormously long, fine tail, found in areas of mallee woodland with large spinifex clumps in a small area of far western Victoria and adjacent South Australia. Crown a clean, rich brown, with streaked back, wings, and cheek; underparts buffy brown. Males have a sky-blue throat. Tail is much longer and far more spindly than tail of fairywrens. The trick to finding this shy species is to find large unburned patches of spinifex, listening carefully for the species’ very thin, faint calls.