Eastern Bristlebird

The eastern bristlebird is very territorial and will often use a distinct, loud melodic song to mark its territory. Surveys have found the bird prefers to live in small, localised populations, and prefer to build their nests on the ground in areas of dense, clumped grasses.

Populations. An isolated colony was found in the Conondale Range in southeastern Queensland in the 1980s. In late 2021, it was estimated that there were only about 2,500 of the species left in the wild, existing in isolated populations in eastern New South Wales and southern Queensland. There are four separate populations: one in northern NSW and into southern Queensland, including the Border Ranges National Park (around 40 birds); one in the Southern Highlands; one in the Jervis Bay area; and one southern population around the NSW border with Victoria, which includes Nadgee Nature Reserve and Croajingolong National Park.

Important Bird Areas. Sites identified by BirdLife International as being important for eastern bristlebird conservation are the Scenic Rim on the border between southern Queensland and northern New South Wales, Budderoo and Barren Grounds, Jervis Bay, and Nadgee to Mallacoota Inlet straddling the border between south-eastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria.