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  1. Species
  2. ›
  3. Ptilonorhynchidae
  4. ›
  5. Chlamydera
  6. ›
  7. Fawn-breasted Bowerbird
Fawn-breasted Bowerbird
Photo · (c) Nathan Ruser, some rights reserved (CC BY)

BirdUp · Species

Fawn-breasted Bowerbird

Chlamydera cerviniventrisGould, 1850

Updated 21 March 2026

Origin: Native
Order
PASSERIFORMES
Family
Ptilonorhynchidae
Genus
Chlamydera

At a glance

The Fawn-breasted Bowerbird is a medium-sized bird, about 29 cm long, native to Australia. It can be seen year-round.

Size
29 cm
Origin
Native
Best seen
Year-round
Commonness
Common
  • Identification
  • Where
  • When
  • Behaviour
  • Gallery

01 · Identification

How to tell it apart

What does a Fawn-breasted Bowerbird look like?

The Fawn-breasted Bowerbird is a medium-sized bird, about 29 cm long and weighing 117–182 g.

The fawn-breasted bowerbird is a medium-sized, up to 32 cm (13 in) long, bowerbird with a greyish brown spotted white plumage, a black bill, dark brown iris, yellow mouth and an orange buff below. Both sexes are similar. The female is slightly smaller than the male.

Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Field specs

Length
29 cm
Weight
117–182 g

Measurements · avonet · CC BY 4.0

03 · When

When to look

When can you see a Fawn-breasted Bowerbird?

The Fawn-breasted Bowerbird is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

05 · Behaviour

Habits and haunts

What does a Fawn-breasted Bowerbird eat?

The Fawn-breasted Bowerbird feeds on fruit, seeds and terrestrial invertebrates, usually foraging in pairs or flocks or alone.

06 · Gallery

Plumage up close

3 photos

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02 · Where

Where to find it

Where does the Fawn-breasted Bowerbird live in Australia?

The Fawn-breasted Bowerbird is native to Australia, recorded across 5 of Australia’s bioregions.

BreedingTrans-Fly (south-central New Guinea), coastal north-east and south-east New Guinea and north-east Cape York Pen., north-east QLD (far north-east Australia)

Distribution from BirdUp Australia community data

Legend

  • Resident
  • Non-breeding

2 regions recorded