Atrichornis clamosus Gould, 1844
Noisy scrub-bird, Noisy scrubbird, Western scrubird, djimolook
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Synonym/s: Atrichia clamosus Gould, 1844
Conservation Status
Last record: 1889 (Anonymous, 1920; Smith, 1979:117; Abbott, 2008:25)
Rediscovered in 1961
IUCN RedList status: Endangered
Historical collections:
"It is likely that the vegetation round Lake Seppings, Albany is where G. Masters collected his many specimens in 1866 (cf. Abbott 2000: 308)." (Abbott, 2008:25)
The last known specimen collected was a male, taken by A. J. Campbell in 1889 near Torbay, who also heard several other males (Anonymous, 1920; Smith, 1979:117; Abbott, 2008:25).
Post-disappearance encounters, searches and expeditions:
Possible records of the species exist, probably from the early 1890's (Abbott, 2008:25).
E. D. Atkinson unsuccessfully searched for the species around Albany in 1895 (Abbott, 2008:25).
Sometime before 1907, F. L. Whitlock unsuccessfully searched around Torbay and westwards to Denmark for the species (Whitlock, 1927; but see Abbott, 2008:24).
S. W. Jackson, aided by Frank Thompson (Thompson, 1975), unsuccessfully searched for the species in the Irwin Inlet – Mt Frankland district 40-50 km west of Denmark in 1912 (Abbott, 1998,2008:24). Presumably so as to not cover the same failed ground as Whitlock (Ibid.).
Charles Allen probably rediscovered the species in October 1943, but refused to show anybody where he found the species (Abbott, 2008:25).
Rediscovery:
The species was famously rediscovered in 1961 by H. O. Webster (Webster, 1962a,b; Serventy, 1962).
Distribution
Western Australia, Australia
Biology & Ecology
Hypodigm
Media
Above: illustration published in (Mathews, 1919-1920:pl.373).
References
Original scientific description:
Gould, John. (1844). Description of Atrichia clamosa. Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 1844: 1-2.
Other references:
Abbott, Ian. (1998). Avifauna of the Irwin Inlet-Broke Inlet-Mt Frankland region of southwest Western Australia,1912-1913. CALMScience 2: 373-386.
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Allen, C. (1944) Letter, 9.2.1944. Letters to HM Whittell, Vol. 1, 1932-46. Acc 559A/13, Battye Library, Perth.
Anonymous. (1920). The West Australian, 5 November, p. 5.
Anonymous. (1964). List of rare birds, including those thought to be so but of which detailed information is still lacking. IUCN Bulletin 10(Special Supplement): 4 pp.
Anonymous. (1971). Two Peoples Bay management plan. S.W.A.N.S. 2(3): 52-53. [illustration and brief mention only]
Anonymous. (1973). W.A.W.A. tour — 1973. S.W.A.N.S. 4(1): 5-7. [includes a photograph of an individual]
Anonymous. (1973). The Prince and the noisy scrub bird. S.W.A.N.S. 4(2): 36.
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