Southern boobook Southern boobook The southern boobook ("Ninox boobook") is a species of owl native to mainland Australia, southern New Guinea, the island of Timor, and the Sunda Islands. Described by John Latham in 1801, it was generally considered to be the same species as the morepork of New Zealand until 1999. Its name is derived from its two-tone "boo-book" call. Eleven subspecies of the southern boobook are recognized, despite evidence that four have calls and genetics distinctive enough to warrant separate species status. The smallest owl on the Australian mainland, the southern boobook is long, with predominantly dark-brown plumage with prominent
Australasian grebe Australasian grebe The Australasian grebe ("Tachybaptus novaehollandiae") is a small waterbird common on fresh water lakes and rivers in greater Australia, New Zealand and on nearby Pacific islands. At in length, it is one of the smallest members of the grebe family, along with the least grebe and little grebe. Both sexes are dark brown above with a glossy-black head and neck and a striking chestnut facial stripe, extending from behind the eye to the base of the neck. The eye is yellow, with a prominent pale yellow face spot below. Both sexes are generally duller, with no chestnut stripe,