Willie Wagtail
Photo: JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/) · CC BY-SA 4.0

Fantails and Silktails

Willie Wagtail

Rhipidura leucophrys

LCLeast Concern
Family
Fantails and Silktails (Rhipiduridae)
Order
Passeriformes

Overview

The willie wagtail (Rhipidura leucophrys) (also spelt willy wagtail) is a passerine bird native to Australia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the Bismarck Archipelago, and Eastern Indonesia. It is a common and familiar bird throughout much of its range, living in most habitats apart from thick forest. Measuring 19–21.5 cm (7+1⁄2–8+1⁄2 in) in length, the willie wagtail is contrastingly coloured with almost entirely black upperparts and white underparts; the male and female have similar plumage.
Three subspecies are recognised; Rhipidura leucophrys leucophrys from central and southern Australia, the smaller R. l.

Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Range and habitat

Sources and further reading

Last updated September 29, 2026.