The superb lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae), a ground-dwelling species of moist eucalypt forests in south-eastern Australia, engineers micro-habitats to host and fatten its prey — worms, centipedes and spiders — before returning later to feast, according to new research.
“The superb lyrebird is a large ground-dwelling passerine bird, widespread in wet forests of eastern Australia and renowned for its mimicry and remarkable courtship displays,” said La Trobe University researcher Alex Maisey and colleagues.
“Lyrebird populations displace enormous volumes of litter and soil whilst foraging.”
“Lyrebirds rake the leaf litter and dig into the soil, creating a fine-scale mosaic of exposed soil and foraging ejecta within a matrix of leaf litter.”
“Over prolonged periods of lyrebird activity, reduced soil compaction and increased aeration and infiltration of the litter and soil could benefit macroinvertebrates.”
“This presents a mechanism by which the engineering activities of lyrebirds may create a feedback loop, essentially enabling them to ‘farm’ their prey.”
Maisey et al. examined whether this engineering activity by superb lyrebirds (Menura novaehollandiae) serves to promote a ‘farming’ effect on their prey, by increasing the biomass and taxonomic richness of the invertebrates on which they feed and altering the composition of invertebrate communities. Image credit: Alex Maisey, University of Wollongong.
The study was conducted in three forest locations in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia: (i) Sherbrooke Forest, part of the Dandenong Ranges National Park; (ii) Yarra Ranges National Park; and (iii) Britannia Creek catchment within the Yarra State Forest.
The researchers fenced lyrebirds out from small areas throughout the forest to create lyrebird-free environments.
In some of these areas, the authors raked the leaf litter and soil to simulated lyrebird foraging.
Where raking had been undertaken, there were more types and larger invertebrates than the areas without simulated lyrebird foraging.
“This type of animal farming was rarely seen in nature,” Dr. Maisey said.
“Lyrebirds set up the perfect home for their prey, creating conditions with more food resources and effectively fattening them up before eating them.”
“These birds, through foraging, heavily influenced the plants and animals that lived in Australia’s south-eastern forests.”
“In this project, lyrebirds were measured moving an average of 155 tons of litter and soil per hectare per year while farming invertebrates.”
“They also lower the intensity of bushfires by burying leaves and branches that fuel fires, thereby shaping whole ecosystems.”
“Lyrebirds are widespread and active across millions of hectares of forest. Their farming actions play an important role in maintaining forest biodiversity.”
The study was published this week in the Journal of Animal Ecology.
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Alex C. Maisey et al. Foraging activity by an ecosystem engineer, the superb lyrebird, ‘farms’ its invertebrate prey. Journal of Animal Ecology, published online March 4, 2025; doi: 10.1111/1365-2656.70009
