Willie Wagtail

BirdAustralia

Sep 10

Written By Alexander Julius Jensen

Rhipidura leucophrys

The willie wagtail is aggressively territorial. It's known to harass much larger birds (including eagles), venomous snakes, and humans that wander too close to its nest. Before an assault, it flares its white "eyebrows", making it look especially enraged.

The Waspish Willie Wagtail

The titillatingly titled willie wagtail is a small bird with a lot of spunk. About 20 cm (8 in) from bill point to tail tip, its petite monochrome frame is dark up top and white underneath. A pair of inclined white "eyebrows" stand out starkly against its black plumage, giving it the appearance of constant displeasure.

This isn't far from the truth; the willie wagtail is a very confrontational bird. It's highly aggressive when defending its territory and no intruder is too large or dangerous for the willie. Other birds, for instance, are not tolerated. Much larger species like ravens, magpies, and kookaburras are harassed by the willie wagtail until they shove off. The wagtail begins its assault by hovering over its target before making strategic swoops, avoiding the head and instead going for the rear — some may call this a cowardly move, but others may call it clever, given that the willie's targets can be more than twice its size.

Imagine that you're a wedge-tailed eagle; you're the largest raptor in Australia and one of the largest eagles in the world. You stand over a metre tall (3.3 ft), you can unfurl your wings to a span of 2.3 metres (7.5 ft), and your exceptionally long talons can take lambs for prey. However, you've stepped out of line, wandered into the wrong neighbourhood, and now you're being doggedly assaulted by the willie wagtail — a bird that weighs around 18 grams (0.63 oz) to your 5 kilogrammes (11 lbs). It seems that the willie wagtail suffers from an acute case of "chihuahua syndrome" — or, perhaps more accurately, the animals living near the willie wagtail are the ones who suffer.

A willie wagtail bravely (stupidly?) assailing an osprey (*Pandion haliaetus*).

Prior to an attack or aggressive display, the willie wagtail flares out its white "eyebrow", making them appear more prominent, as if to emphasise the absolute fury it feels over the intruder's transgression. And it's not just birds it goes after; no animal is safe from the willie's wrath. It harasses long-necked turtles despite their shelled defences and tiger snakes despite their potent venom. Domestic dogs and cats are on its hit list. And don't get too comfortable, because it goes after humans as well. How often it actually succeeds in its territorial attacks against much larger foes isn't exactly known, but we can be sure that it'll at least try. The willie wagtail is the embodiment of rage and indignation, manifested in the body of a tiny bird.

Fast-lane Parenting

And it only becomes angrier and more territorial when it comes time to mate and care for chicks. A willie wagtail couple breeds most often from August to January, although they'll do so any time of year if conditions allow it. On a level tree branch, they construct a neat nest shaped like a cup. The base structure is made of grasses and twigs. Sticky spider webs are woven around the outside as reinforcement. The inside is made cosy and soft with a lining of hair or fur — if the wagtail can't find any shed fur, it'll just pull it straight from an animal. The cream-coloured eggs are usually laid in a trio and incubated by both parents. After two weeks, they hatch, and after another two weeks, the young leave the nest. The young stay with their parents for a while, but when it comes time for the parents to raise a new clutch, the young better get going or they'll be forcibly driven away. The parents have got a job to do and, in a single good season, they can raise up to four clutches.

Zig-zagging & Tail-wagging

The willie wagtail is unceasingly hyperactive — and not only when it comes to breeding. Pairs or groups of these birds can be seen zooming around the grasslands, wetlands, and open forests throughout most of Australia, as well as the islands to the north (New Guinea, Torres Strait, Moluccas and the Solomon Islands) — with some populations migrating and others remaining sedentary. It's done especially well at settling in human-cultivated areas like parks, gardens and golf courses, and, despite its territorial nature, will often build its nest near human homes.

Most of its foraging takes place on the ground. A willie wagtail darts around in quick bursts, following an erratic zig-zag path as it searches for insects (which make up the bulk of its diet), seeds, or human debris like bread and biscuit crumbs. Its meandering movements, accompanied by a little dance which consists of flicking its fan-like tail from side to side, are used to flush out prey from beneath the grass. But when it doesn't feel like putting in the effort to perform a flashy bop, it's known to stand on the backs of grazing livestock, letting them till up the ground with their hooves before flying down to pick at the now-exposed grub.

The wagtail is just as frantic in the air as it is on the ground. Its flight is agile; it flies low and twists through the air, snatching flying insects or homing in on arboreal prey. For this hunting technique, the livestock are used as mobile perches, from which the wagtail can survey its surroundings and launch itself at its targets. Its habit of tailing livestock has earned it the nickname of 'shepherd's companion'.

Fake Wagtail

The white wagtail (*Motacilla alba*) on the left is a 'true wagtail', while the willie wagtail on the right is actually an unrelated 'fantail'.

The willie's tail-swishing is what makes it a 'wagtail'. But despite its name, the willie wagtail isn't a true wagtail — which are typically found throughout Europe, Africa, and Asia. It isn't closely related to the ubiquitous white wagtail or grey wagtail (which are in the genus Motacilla of the family Motacillidae). In fact, the willie wagtail belongs to the 'fantails' — a different genus (Rhipidura) in a completely different family (Rhipiduridae).

It does, however, resemble wagtails in appearance, and as such, early explorers/settlers — who had a knack for naming newly found birds after familiar birds from back home — just named it after its similar-looking but unrelated counterparts. This is also how we got the Australian magpie (which isn't an actual magpie) and the Australasian robins (named after the not-very-closely related European robin). The fantails (to which the willie wagtail belongs) are native to Australasia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. Like wagtails, fantails are small insectivorous songbirds. However, one way to differentiate them is by the sway of their jigs; the wagtails bob their tails up and down, while the fantails swish theirs from side to side. Perhaps it would be more accurate to rename the former to "bobtails".

The reason behind the "willie" part of its name is unclear — perhaps because it zips around or wags its tail "willy-nilly". Maybe this aggro little bird is so scary that it gives other animals the "willies". Or maybe it just sounded funny. Aboriginal bird names typically have simpler etymologies; many are onomatopoeias of the bird's call. The willie wagtail is named something like "djikirridj-djikirridj" or “djidi-djidi” (pronounced chitty-chitty), by several groups. Although it is a diurnal bird, the songs of male willie wagtails are often heard at night. It was said that their high-pitched, chittering warbles rang out most readily when the moon is full. This full moon "myth" was confirmed to be true, although the reasons behind it aren't fully clear — perhaps the light from a full moon means better visibility for advertising males?

Assaulting animals multiple times its size. Snatching webs from spiders to build its nest and plucking fur from mammals to line it. Hunting in the most ostentatious way possible. Using livestock as mobile perches. The willie wagtail is an absolute menace and I find it, perhaps strangely, very endearing.

**Where Does It Live?**

⛰️ Most open habitats but especially open forests and woodlands.
📍 Mainland Australia, New Guinea, Moluccas and the Solomon Islands.

‘Least Concern’ as of 01 October, 2016.

IUCN

Size // Small
Wingspan // N/A
Length // 20 cm (7.9 in)
Weight // 18 grams (0.63 oz)
Activity: Diurnal ☀️
Lifestyle: Social 👥
Lifespan: 10 - 15 years
Diet: Carnivore (Insectivore)
Favorite Food: Insects and arachnids 🕷️
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Rhipiduridae
Genus: Rhipidura
Species: R. leucophrys

Despite its small size — about 20 cm (8 in) long — it harasses much larger birds such as ravens, magpies, kookaburras, and even raptors.
One of the wagtail's victims is the wedge-tailed eagle — among the world's largest eagles, with a wingspan of 2.3 metres (7.5 ft). The eagle weighs some 5 kilogrammes (11 lbs). The wagtail weighs only 18 grams (0.63 oz).
The willie wagtail also assaults non-feathered animals that wander into its territory. Its hit list includes long-necked turtles, tiger snakes, dogs, cats, and humans.
Most often, the willie wagtail hunts on the ground. It darts around in quick bursts, tracing an erratic zig-zag path as it searches for insects, seeds, or human debris (bread crumbs and the like).
Its zig-zagging forage strategy, accompanied by a little dance where it flicks its tail from side to side, is used to flush insects out from the grass so that it can catch them.
When the wagtail is feeling lazy, it perches on the backs of grazing livestock and waits for their hooves to turn up the soil, revealing tasty grubs. It also uses livestock as mobile lookout and launch towers for catching flying insects.
The willie wagtail's habit of tailing livestock has earned it the nickname of 'shepherd's companion'.
Although it is a diurnal bird, the songs of male willie wagtails are often heard at night and most readily during a full moon. The reasons behind this aren't fully clear.
The willie wagtail makes itself a neat cup-shaped nest, woven from grasses and twigs, reinforced with stolen spider webs, and lined inside with fur — sometimes foraged shed, sometimes plucked straight from the mammal.
A clutch of willie wagtail eggs hatch after only two weeks, and, after another two weeks, the fledglings leave the nest. If the young are still in the nest when their parents start work on a new clutch, they'll be forcibly evicted.
In a single good season, a wagtail couple can raise up to four clutches, with each clutch typically containing three eggs.
The willie wagtail lives in most open habitats throughout Mainland Australia, New Guinea, the Moluccas and the Solomon Islands.
The willie wagtail isn't a true 'wagtail' — it's not in the genus Motacilla, with other wagtails. It's actually related to 'fantails' — in the genus Rhipidura and part of a completely different bird family. Fantails are native to Australasia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent.
The willie wagtail was mistitled by European explorers/colonisers, who thought the bird resembled their wagtails from back home. Such a nostalgic naming scheme has also given us the Australian magpie (which isn't an actual magpie) and the Australasian robins (named after the distantly related European robin).