fairy wren

fairy wren, any of the 27 species of the songbird family Maluridae (sometimes placed in the warbler family Sylviidae). These common names, and bluecap, are given particularly to M. cyaneus, a great favourite in gardens and orchards of eastern Australia. The male has blue foreparts with black markings. This species, like others of the genus, is about 13 cm (5 inches) long, with a narrow blue tail, which is carried cocked up. The bluecap sometimes sings at night as well as by day. The splendid fairy wren (M. splendens) of Western Australia, unlike the bluecap in the east, avoids settled areas.