White-browed Scrubwren - Taxonomy

Taxonomy

The White-browed Scrubwren was originally described by naturalists Nicholas Aylward Vigors and Thomas Horsfield in 1827. The specific epithet frontalis derived from the Latin frons "eyebrow". It is now divided into three subspecies:

• S. f. frontalis, known as the White-browed Scrubwren, is found in coastal eastern Australia from the New South Wales-Queensland border round to Adelaide in South Australia.
• S. f. laevigaster, known as the Buff-breasted Scrubwren, is found in coastal Queensland from the New South Wales border north to the Atherton Tableland.
• S. f. maculatus, known as the Spotted Scrubwren, occurs in coastal southern Australia, from Kangaroo Island and Adelaide westwards to Shark Bay in Western Australia. It is known to intergrade with the nominate subspecies where their ranges overlap.

S. humilis, the Tasmanian Scrubwren, is found in Tasmania and Bass Strait islands and sometimes considered a subspecies of the White-browed Scrubwren. It is larger at 13.5 cm long and lays larger eggs.