Western Bowerbird (Chlamydera guttata)

The Western Bowerbird replaces the Spotted Bowerbird in the desert hills and ranges of central and Western Australia. Bower-building and behavior are similar, although the Western builds its avenue of sticks on a higher platform 150-200 mm above ground level.

There is so much resemblance between them that they have been considered races of the same species. Westerns, however, are much smaller and more colorful than their eastern counterparts. There is a difference in shape between the tail and the bill of this bird. Unlike the Spotted, its crown is scalloped, not streaked, and its mantle patch lacks the plain appearance that is characteristic of the species.

There is no evidence that they intergrade where they almost meet in the northern Simpson Desert. In their range, Western Bowerbirds prefer breaks where there is water for drinking and copses of leafy trees for shelter and food. As the female approaches his bower to inspect, the male calls out, fans his tail, jumps and flicks his wings, and performs ritualized dances. The pink crest on the neck will also be erected, as wall decorations held in the bill and shaken vigorously.
However, they are primarily fruit-eaters, eating drupes of sandalwoods and mistletoe within the crowns of shrubs and trees. Fig trees, Ficus platypoda, are found in pockets in many areas where the bird lives. Guttated Bowerbird is another name for it. Western Bowerbirds are about 250-270 mm long, but females are a bit larger.
Male: This male possesses a broad nape bar of dense lilac plumes over a dusky, closely scalloped ochre crown. There is a fleck of ochre on the tips of all feathers on the mantle as well as the rest of the upper parts, wings, and short tail. In the face and throat, the color is dusky, spotted with ochre. On the flanks and undertail, the color is yellow-cream, slightly barred, and variably washed with russet.
The eyes are brown in color. There is a black bill and a yellow mouth. Olive-grey is the color of the feet. The female has a scalloped crown, a shorter nape bar, a more heavily spotted throat, and a longer tail than the male. MALE: As female; nape bar absent. This bird has a similar call to the Spotted Bowerbird. Francis Gregory collected the species in 1861, and John Gould gave the specimen to him. As a result of its plumage, guttata is named spotted. There is a close similarity between this species and Chlamydera maculata, the spotted bowerbird.
The western bowerbird is polygamous, with males mating with several females over the breeding season and females taking care of nesting, incubation, and chick rearing. September-December is the nesting and breeding season. In trees, nests are made from loose saucers of dry twigs, lined with finer twigs and needles, and placed in horizontal forks. Usually two eggs; pale grey-green, covered with brown scrolls and occasional darker blotches; oval, 32 x 26mm.
From Birksgate, Warburton, Macdonnell, and Jervois Ranges to the edge of Gibson Desert, and south to CueLeonora, WA, the Western Bowerbird is found in central Australian ranges. In addition to the nominated Chlamydera guttatag, and C. guttata cateri, which occurs only in the North West Cape in Western Australia. Rock figs, sandalwood, snake gourd, and mistletoe are among the fruits fed to the western bowerbird. In addition to feeding on cultivated fruits, they will also enter farms to do so. Other items in the diet include nectar, flowers, beetles, grasshoppers, ants, moths, and moth larvae. It is rare to find them far from water as they need to drink regularly.