Malurus coronatus
| Purple-crowned fairywren | |
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| Purple-crowned fairy-wren painting by John Gould |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Maluridae |
| Genus: | Malurus |
| Species: | M. coronatus |
| Binomial name | |
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Malurus coronatus Gould, 1858 |
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| Range of M. c. subsp. coronatus Range of M. c. subsp. macgillivrayi | |
The purple-crowned fairy-wren (Malurus coronatus) is a species of bird in the Maluridae family. The purple-crowned fairy-wren is endemic to northern Australia. It is the largest of 13 species in the genus Malurus; the genus is confined to Australia and Papua New Guinea. The species name is derived from the Latin word cǒrōna meaning "crown", owing to the distinctive purple circle of crown feathers sported by breeding males. Genetic evidence shows the purple-crowned fairy-wren is most closely related to the superb (Malurus cyaneus) and splendid fairywren (Malurus splendens). Purple-crowned fairy-wrens can be distinguished from other fairy-wrens in northern Australia by the presence of cheek patches (either black in males or reddish-chocolate in females) and the deep blue colour of their perky tails.
The purple-crowned fairy-wren is also known as lilac-crowned, mauve-crowned, or purple-crowned wren, crowned superb warbler, and purple-crowned wren-warbler. The two recognised subspecies of the purple-crowned fairy-wren are: the western (M. c. coronatus) and the eastern (M. c. macgillivrayi). Subspecies designation was originally based on differences in plumage coloration and body size of museum skins; more recent genetic analyses support this split. The species was first collected in 1855 and 1856 by the surgeon J. R. Elsey at Victoria River and Robinson River. The nominate subspecies M. c. coronatus was first described by the ornithologist John Gould in 1858. Gregory Mathews named the eastern form M. c. macgillivrayi in 1913.
The purple-crowned fairy-wren is a sexually dimorphic small bird measuring approximately 14 cm in length, with a wing-span of approximately 16 cm and weighing 9−13 g. The plumage is brown overall, the wings more greyish brown, and the belly cream-buff. The blue tail is long and upright, and all except the central pair of feathers are broadly tipped with white. Their bill is black and the legs and feet are brownish grey. Although there is slight geographical variation between the two subspecies, only the difference in colour of mantle is noticeable in the field. The crown and nape of M. c. macgillivrayi is slightly bluer, and its mantle and upper back has weak blue grey shading, whereas the slightly larger M. c. coronatus has a browner back, as well as a buff-coloured, rather than white, breast and belly.
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