Template:POTD/2023-07-23
The scarlet robin (Petroica boodang) is a red-breasted passerine bird in the Petroicidae family (the Australasian robins). The species is found on continental Australia and its offshore islands, including Tasmania. With a length of 12 to 13.5 cm and a mass between 12 and 14 g, the male scarlet robin is black on the head, back and tail, and has a white belly and scarlet breast, with black and white wings. The female matches the male in pattern, but is duller, with brown plumage instead of black and a much more washed-out red on the breast. The scarlet robin feeds on arthropods, such as insects and spiders, adjusting its foraging behaviour seasonally – it feeds mostly on the ground during the winter, but during the summer and spring prey is more commonly snatched from bark and foliage. It is a territorial and monogamous species and defends its nesting territories both from others of the same species and from pairs of the related flame robin. This female scarlet robin was photographed in Blackheath, New South Wales, Australia.Photograph credit: JJ Harrison