White-winged Fairywren (Malurus leucopterus)

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Vulnerable.

Western Australia, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016: Vulnerable.

Breeding season

Timing differs between the island populations. Barrow Island breeding is reported from April to September, with most egg-laying from June to August, while Dirk Hartog Island breeding is concentrated from June or July to September. Movement is generally limited because both island populations are regarded as resident or possibly sedentary.

Mainland breeding timing is not provided. Before clearing, use local survey results and rainfall conditions to refine the risk period, especially where the project affects dense Triodia, low heath or shrubland.

• Breeding: Barrow Island breeding is reported from April to September, with most egg-laying from June to August. Dirk Hartog Island breeding is reported from June to the end of September, with most egg-laying from July to September. Breeding may follow good rainfall on Barrow Island.
• Young: Fairy-wren young generally remain in the nest for up to two months, but the documents do not give White-winged Fairywren-specific hatching, fledging or dependency dates. This row represents the likely period of greatest overlap with the documented breeding season, not a measured schedule.
• Highest clearing risk: Clearing and disturbance are most likely to harm birds during the documented April to September breeding period, particularly June to August on Barrow Island and July to September on Dirk Hartog Island, when nests and dependent young may be present.

Identification

The White-winged Fairywren is best identified by its small size, compact shape, social behaviour and, in adult breeding males, the contrasting white shoulder and wing patches. Identification is easiest during the breeding season, when males are more conspicuous and vocal.

Juveniles and females have a grey-brown back, wings and crown, a whiter chest and belly, and a tail tinged with blue. Adult breeding males have white shoulder and wing patches. Mainland males are rich dark blue, while island males are glossy black.

Identification: Similar species

Females and juveniles can resemble Variegated Fairywrens. On Barrow Island there is no other similar species, while on Dirk Hartog Island the main identification issue is separating island birds from unusually dark mainland birds in poor light.

• Use location, habitat and the colour of adult male breeding plumage together when assigning subspecies.
• Treat very dark mainland birds cautiously, particularly in poor light, because they may be confused with Dirk Hartog Island birds.

Identification: Field signs and detection

The species is gregarious and is typically seen in small groups. Males are conspicuous but wary and difficult to approach, and birds are harder to observe outside the breeding season. Vocal activity is greatest before dawn and during the breeding season.

Fairy-wrens build loosely woven, oval-domed nests from twigs, spider webs and grass, lined with wool, feathers and animal hair. The supplied material does not provide species-specific information on tracks, scats, eyeshine or other indirect signs.

• Survey suitable habitat by area searches or transect-point surveys early in the morning.
• Record calls and sightings, group size, sex, plumage and the vegetation occupied.
• Use playback only as a supplementary method, because mainland birds are reported to respond poorly.

Distribution: Mainland and island range

The species occurs across central and western mainland Australia and on two Western Australian islands. The supplied documents do not provide a complete state by state or IBRA bioregion range, or a population estimate and trend.

The mainland subspecies, M. l. leuconotus, occurs across most of central and western mainland Australia. The documents do not assign this range to individual mainland states or IBRA bioregions.

M. l. edouardi occurs exclusively on Barrow Island. M. l. leucopterus is found on Dirk Hartog Island. Both island populations are regarded as resident, possibly sedentary, and have not been recorded on nearby islands or the mainland, although confirmation is required.

• Treat records from Barrow Island and Dirk Hartog Island as geographically distinct island occurrences.
• Confirm the subspecies before applying mainland habitat assumptions to an island project.

Distribution: Known locations and conservation areas

White-winged Fairywrens are protected across Australian Wildlife Conservancy sanctuaries including Kalamurina, Newhaven and Buckaringa, where they are regularly recorded in annual EcoHealth reports. The supplied documents do not quantify abundance at these sites or identify them as population strongholds.

Distribution: Population information

No population size, density, trajectory or total area of occupancy is provided in the supplied documents.

Population size: Not stated in the supplied documents.

Population trend: Not stated in the supplied documents.

State distribution detail: Western Australia is confirmed by the state listing and the named island populations, but the mainland state range is not specified.

IBRA bioregions: Not specified in the supplied documents.

Habitat: Mainland habitat

Habitat is generally low, dense vegetation in arid and semi-arid environments, with different but overlapping vegetation associations on Barrow and Dirk Hartog islands. Retaining structurally dense grass and shrub cover is important when assessing clearing impacts.

The mainland subspecies occupies low shrubland in arid and semi-arid regions, specifically including saltpans and chenopod shrubland. Fairy-wrens generally move among native grasses and shrubs.

• Map low shrubland, chenopod shrubland, saltpans and dense grass patches as potential habitat.
• Do not restrict habitat assessment to areas with tall trees, because the species uses low shrub and grass communities.

Habitat: Island habitat

On Barrow Island, the species occurs in hummock grasslands on sand plains, sandhills and interdunes. These may contain Triodia, with or without sea grass Spinifex longifolius, and scattered or emergent shrubs such as necklace acacia and bat's wing coral tree.

On Dirk Hartog Island, it occurs from coastal dunes to the island summit, about 200 metres above sea level. Recorded habitats include mallee thickets, low acacia, Diplolaena and Triodia scrub, saltbush flats, low Melaleuca heath, Thryptomene heath, and clumps of Triodia and sea grass.

Recorded elevation on Dirk Hartog Island: From coastal dunes to the summit, about 200 metres above sea level.

Preferred Barrow Island grass structure: Lower country with dense Triodia greater than 40 centimetres high is preferred over rockier, higher terrain with shorter spinifex less than 40 centimetres high.

• Give priority to dense Triodia greater than 40 centimetres high on Barrow Island.
• Recognise that island habitat can extend from coastal dunes to elevated inland areas and is not confined to one vegetation community.

Habitat: Habitat exclusions and limits

On Barrow Island, the species is only sporadically found on claypans and has not been recorded in creek beds or mangroves. No broader elevation, rainfall or temperature limits are provided.

Foraging habitat: Diet and feeding sites

White-winged Fairywrens forage close to the ground and within native grass and shrub cover. The supplied information supports a mixed diet of small insects and seeds, but does not provide a measured foraging range or named food plants for this species.

Fairy-wrens spend the day flitting among native grasses and shrubs while taking small insects and seeds. For White-winged Fairywrens, suitable feeding habitat therefore includes dense Triodia, chenopod shrubland, low heath and shrub patches that provide ground-level cover and access to invertebrates and seeds.

• Inspect the ground layer and lower shrub layer when assessing habitat quality.
• Retain connected patches of native grass and low shrub cover rather than clearing isolated feeding patches.

Foraging habitat: Foraging range

The supplied documents do not give a typical foraging distance, territory size or home-range measurement. The species is regarded as resident or possibly sedentary on Barrow and Dirk Hartog islands, although local movements may occur within suitable habitat.

Foraging range: Not stated in the supplied documents.

Named food plants or prey: Small insects and seeds are reported for fairy-wrens generally; no White-winged Fairywren-specific food list is provided.

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat

Breeding occurs within dense grass and shrub habitat, with timing differing between the island populations and probably varying with rainfall. Fairy-wrens breed in social groups and helpers may assist with raising young.

On Barrow Island, breeding habitat includes dense hummock grassland, particularly lower country with Triodia greater than 40 centimetres high and scattered shrubs. On Dirk Hartog Island, breeding habitat includes dense low shrub, heath, mallee and Triodia communities.

Fairy-wren nests are loosely woven domes of twigs, spider webs and grass, lined with wool, feathers and animal hair. The species is socially cooperative, with breeding pairs and other group members helping to care for young.

• Search dense grass and low shrub patches for nests before clearing.
• Retain continuous cover around potential nest sites and avoid unnecessary disturbance during the documented breeding windows.

Breeding habitat: Breeding facts

Breeding season, Barrow Island: Egg-laying mainly June to August; breeding reported from April to September. Breeding may occur opportunistically after good rainfall.

Breeding season, Dirk Hartog Island: Most egg-laying July to September; other accounts place breeding from June to the end of September or July to August.

Clutch size: Three to four chicks is reported for fairy-wrens generally; a White-winged Fairywren-specific clutch size is not stated.

Incubation period: Not stated in the supplied documents.

Time in nest: Young fairy-wrens generally remain in the nest for up to two months; a White-winged Fairywren-specific period is not stated.

Age at maturity: Four years to mature and moult into breeding plumage.

Lifespan: Not stated in the supplied documents.

Sheltering habitat: Cover and refuge

Shelter is provided by dense grass and low shrub cover rather than tree hollows or burrows. Maintaining ground-layer structure is therefore important during site preparation and clearing.

On Barrow Island, the species may prefer dense Triodia greater than 40 centimetres high, with scattered shrubs, over shorter spinifex and areas with more bare or stony ground. On Dirk Hartog Island, sheltering vegetation includes low acacia, Diplolaena, Triodia, Melaleuca and Thryptomene heath, mallee thickets and coastal dune vegetation.

Preferred Barrow Island shelter height: Dense Triodia greater than 40 centimetres high.

• Retain dense grass clumps and low shrub patches within and beside work areas.
• Avoid reducing dense ground cover to isolated fragments, particularly on sand plains, interdunes and low island flats.

Sheltering habitat: Nests and roosting

Fairy-wren nests are loosely woven, oval-domed structures made from twigs, spider webs and grass, with an inner lining of wool, feathers and animal hair. The documents do not provide a nest height, nest dimensions, roost height, hollow use, burrow use or den use for White-winged Fairywrens.

• Search ground and low vegetation for domed nests before vegetation removal.
• Do not assume that a lack of tree hollows indicates a lack of sheltering habitat.

Threats: Clearing and habitat degradation

The main documented risks are habitat loss and degradation, introduced predators, grazing and altered fire. Project controls should focus on retaining dense grass and shrub habitat and avoiding disturbance when birds are breeding or caring for young.

Land clearing, habitat destruction by feral herbivores, and grazing livestock are identified threats to fairy-wrens. Clearing low shrubland, chenopod vegetation, saltpans, heath or dense Triodia can remove feeding, sheltering and breeding habitat.

• Survey and map suitable habitat before finalising clearing limits.
• Keep clearing footprints and access tracks out of dense grass and low shrub patches where practicable.
• Control livestock and feral herbivore access where grazing is degrading the ground layer.

Threats: Fire and fragmentation

Altered fire regimes threaten fairy-wrens. Fragmentation can reduce the continuity of the dense grass and shrub cover used by this species, although the supplied documents do not give a minimum patch size or fire interval.

Minimum habitat patch size: Not stated in the supplied documents.

Required fire interval: Not stated in the supplied documents.

• Assess how proposed clearing and temporary works will divide remaining grass and shrub habitat.
• Manage fire timing and extent to retain a mix of dense, mature ground cover and younger vegetation.

Threats: Predators and other project risks

Domestic and feral cats are documented threats. The supplied documents do not identify species-specific effects of roads, vehicle strike, disease or hydrology change, so these risks should be assessed according to the project setting rather than assumed to be absent.

• Control access by domestic and feral cats around project compounds and retained habitat.
• Use pre-clearing checks and staged clearing to reduce the risk of destroying active nests or separating dependent young.
• Apply low-speed vehicle controls and maintain habitat connectivity where roads cross suitable grass and shrub habitat.

Survey methodology: 1. Area searches and transect surveys

Survey effort should target suitable low shrubland, hummock grassland and island vegetation, with work timed for the period when birds are most vocal and detectable. The survey approach must reflect the relevant subspecies and site, because the Barrow Island and Dirk Hartog Island forms have different habitat descriptions and breeding periods.

Search suitable habitat on foot during the early morning, when calling activity is greatest, and record both calls and sightings.

For Barrow Island and Dirk Hartog Island birds, use area searches or transect point surveys for 10 hours over 3 days.

In areas smaller than 50 hectares, concentrate searches at dawn during the breeding season.

On Barrow Island, search hummock grasslands dominated by Triodia, including sand plains, sandhills and interdunes, while also checking scattered shrub areas and lower country with dense grass greater than 40 centimetres high.

On Dirk Hartog Island, search from coastal dunes to higher ground, including mallee, acacia and Diplolaena scrub, saltbush flats, Melaleuca heath, Thryptomene heath, Triodia and sea grass Spinifex longifolius.

Record group size, location, behaviour, calls, breeding activity and the habitat occupied.

Males are conspicuous but wary, and birds can be difficult to observe outside the breeding season, so allow time for quiet observation and avoid approaching closely.

Area search or transect effort: 10 hours over 3 days

Small areas: Less than 50 hectares, most effective at dawn during the breeding season

Survey methodology: 2. Broadcast and call playback surveys

Use broadcast surveys in suitable habitat where visual searches may miss wary birds.

For Barrow Island and Dirk Hartog Island birds, use 8 hours over 3 days, with surveys early in the morning and preferably during the breeding season.

Record the playback location, time, weather, call used, response time, response type and any birds seen.

Treat a non-response as inconclusive because the guideline reports that the mainland subspecies may respond poorly to playback.

Broadcast survey effort: 8 hours over 3 days

Best detection period: Before dawn and during the breeding season

Survey methodology: 3. Mist-netting

Use mist-netting only where required for an approved research, monitoring or fauna management purpose and where suitably authorised personnel are available.

For the island forms, the guideline gives 12 hours over 4 days, with nets set low among Triodia or dense vegetation.

Check nets at the frequency required by the relevant approval and animal ethics or welfare procedures, and release birds promptly at the capture location unless an authorised relocation is required.

Do not use mist-netting as a substitute for area searches or transect surveys during a construction pre-clearance inspection.

Mist-netting effort: 12 hours over 4 days

Net placement: Low among Triodia or dense vegetation

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

• Confirm the subspecies, site habitat and survey area before selecting the method and effort.
• Survey at the time of day and in conditions that allow calls and sightings to be detected, and document conditions that reduce detectability.
• Map all records, habitat used, nests or recently used breeding areas, movement routes and areas proposed for clearing.
• Record the effort completed, including search hours, survey dates, transect or search area, playback effort, observers and detection results.
• Submit confirmed records and negative survey results, where requested, to the relevant state or territory wildlife database.
• Retain photographs, call recordings, spatial data, field sheets and any fauna handling records with the project environmental records.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise habitat loss

Treat occupied or suitable fairy-wren habitat as a fauna constraint before clearing or construction starts. The species uses low shrubland and grassland, lives in small groups and is resident or probably sedentary on Barrow Island and Dirk Hartog Island.

Retain connected patches of low shrubland, chenopod shrubland, saltpan vegetation, hummock grassland and dense grassland within and beside the work area.

On Barrow Island, retain Triodia grasslands, particularly lower country with dense grass taller than 40 centimetres, and avoid unnecessary disturbance to scattered shrubs and emergent trees.

On Dirk Hartog Island, retain the range of occupied vegetation, including mallee, acacia and Diplolaena scrub, saltbush, Melaleuca and Thryptomene heath, Triodia and Spinifex longifolius.

Keep retained habitat connected to nearby suitable vegetation and minimise new barriers between family groups and feeding areas.

Define site-specific no-go areas and buffers around confirmed birds, breeding areas and retained habitat in the fauna management plan; the supplied guidelines do not specify a universal buffer distance.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and work planning

Check the EPBC Act requirements before work because the species is listed as Vulnerable nationally.

Check Western Australian approval, permit and fauna handling requirements where the work occurs in Western Australia, including requirements applying to the listed population or subspecies.

Plan clearing outside the relevant breeding period where practicable: April to September is reported for Barrow Island, and June to September, July to September or July to August is reported for Dirk Hartog Island.

Stage clearing so that retained habitat remains available while each work area is inspected and cleared.

Set out stop-work, fauna handling, injured animal and unexpected threatened species procedures in the fauna management plan.

Barrow Island breeding period reported in the guideline: April to September, with most egg-laying suggested for June to August

Dirk Hartog Island breeding period reported in the guideline: June to September, with other sources specifying July to September or July to August

Before habitat disturbance: Site preparation

Complete a pre-clearance survey using early-morning area searches or transect point surveys in suitable habitat.

Mark no-go habitat, retained vegetation, access tracks and the limits of approved clearing before machinery enters the site.

Use exclusion fencing where it can keep machinery and people out of retained habitat without blocking essential bird movement.

Brief all operators and spotter catchers on the species appearance, calls, work limits, stop-work triggers and reporting process.

Inspect proposed clearing areas again immediately before work if the earlier survey was completed well before clearing or if conditions have changed.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls and machinery coordination

Use active supervision during clearing because White-winged Fairy-wrens are small, wary birds that may remain hidden in dense grass or shrubs. The fauna spotter catcher must have authority to pause machinery and must work from the approved clearing sequence.

Complete a daily pre-start inspection of the clearing footprint, access routes, exclusion fencing and retained habitat.

Keep machinery within the approved footprint and prevent grading, vehicle movements, stockpiling and laydown activities in marked habitat.

Clear progressively in a direction that allows birds to move towards retained suitable habitat, where the approved fauna management plan identifies a safe movement route.

Require the spotter catcher to remain in a position where the active clearing face, machinery and likely escape areas can be seen.

Stop machinery immediately when the spotter catcher gives the agreed stop signal or when a bird enters the exclusion zone.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat and fauna handling

Inspect dense Triodia, grass clumps, low shrubs, saltbush, heath and other suitable cover before it is removed.

Do not disturb nests, eggs, dependent young or breeding groups unless the action is covered by the relevant approval and fauna management plan.

Allow an uninjured bird to move to nearby retained habitat where possible rather than attempting capture.

Only an authorised and suitably trained person may capture, handle, temporarily contain or relocate a bird.

If capture is necessary, use a method suitable for the bird and conditions, minimise handling time and release it into nearby retained habitat that is outside the work area.

Take an injured or distressed bird to an appropriately qualified veterinarian or authorised wildlife carer, following the applicable state or territory requirements.

Do not handle birds simply to improve identification or obtain a photograph.

During habitat disturbance: Stop-work triggers and records

Stop work in the affected area if a White-winged Fairy-wren, nest, eggs, dependent young or injured animal is found within the clearing footprint or at risk from the works.

Stop work if exclusion fencing fails, machinery enters a no-go area or clearing extends beyond the approved footprint.

Record the date, time, exact location, subspecies if known, number of birds, behaviour, habitat, action taken, handler, release location and outcome for every fauna interaction.

Notify the project environmental officer and the relevant regulator or approval holder when a listed bird is injured, killed, captured, relocated or found outside the approved impact area.

Review the clearing sequence after each incident before work recommences.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Post-clearance work must confirm that no birds, nests or dependent young remain at risk and that retained habitat controls are still effective. Continue monitoring where clearing has removed part of a territory or separated suitable habitat patches.

Inspect the completed clearing area and its edges for birds, nests, injured animals and signs of unauthorised disturbance.

Check retained Triodia, grassland, shrubland, heath and saltbush areas for damage from machinery, dust, fire or weed spread.

Remove temporary access controls only after the environmental officer confirms that no further clearing or construction risk remains.

Maintain exclusion fencing and no-go markers around retained habitat for as long as construction activities could affect the birds.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

Repeat area searches or transect point surveys in retained habitat where the project approval or fauna management plan requires monitoring.

Use the same locations, timing and detection method where possible so that results can be compared with the pre-clearance survey.

Record occupancy, group observations, calls, breeding activity, habitat condition, incidents and any change in access to connected habitat.

Report completed clearing, fauna incidents, monitoring results and any corrective actions to the project environmental officer and approval agencies as required.

Apply approved offsets or other compensatory measures where residual impacts remain and the approval requires them.

Rehabilitation actions: Reinstate suitable structure

Rehabilitation should recreate the low, dense cover and habitat connections used by White-winged Fairy-wrens. The supplied documents do not nominate a planting list, restoration density or monitoring period, so rehabilitation targets must be set from the pre-clearing vegetation community and approval conditions.

Use local provenance plants and seed from the pre-clearing community, with the species mix selected for the relevant site habitat.

For mainland habitat, restore low shrubland, chenopod shrubland and saltpan vegetation rather than establishing tall, open vegetation that does not match the recorded habitat.

For Barrow Island, restore hummock grassland with Triodia and scattered shrubs where those features were present before clearing.

For Dirk Hartog Island, restore the relevant combination of mallee, acacia and Diplolaena scrub, saltbush, Melaleuca or Thryptomene heath, Triodia and Spinifex longifolius.

Reinstate connected patches and avoid creating narrow isolated strips between cleared areas.

Rehabilitation actions: Manage threats and site condition

Control weeds and prevent vehicles, grazing livestock and feral herbivores from damaging regenerating grassland and shrubland.

Manage domestic and feral cat access in accordance with the approved conservation or site management programme.

Plan fire management to retain dense grass and shrub cover and to avoid inappropriate fire regimes in occupied habitat.

Do not place logs, rocks, hollows or nest boxes as a substitute for the low grass and shrub structure unless site assessment identifies a separate need for those features; the supplied documents do not identify them as White-winged Fairy-wren habitat requirements.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitor rehabilitation success

Inspect rehabilitation for vegetation establishment, cover, weed invasion, erosion, grazing and connectivity with retained habitat.

Use early-morning area searches or transect point surveys, with call and sighting records, to check whether White-winged Fairy-wrens return to restored habitat.

Compare monitoring results with the pre-clearance habitat description and records from retained reference areas.

Set corrective actions for failed establishment, weed spread, feral predator activity, grazing or loss of habitat connectivity, and document when each action is completed.

Sources

• Fairy-wrens, australianwildlife.org: https://www.australianwildlife.org/fairy-wrens/
• Survey guidelines for Australia's threatened birds, Australian Government DCCEEW: https://www.agriculture.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/survey-guidelines-birds-april-2017.pdf