NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Superb Lyrebird
Menura novaehollandiae Latham, 1801
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The superb lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae) is an Australian passerine songbird, one of two species from the family Menuridae, with the other being the much rarer Albert's lyrebird. One of the world's largest songbirds, the superb lyrebird is renowned for its elaborate tail and courtship displays, and for its excellent mimicry. The species is endemic to Australia and is found in forest in the southeast of the country. According to David Attenborough, the superb lyrebird displays one of the most sophisticated voice skills within the animal kingdom—"the most elaborate, the most complex, and the most beautiful".
Wikipedia contributors, Superb lyrebird; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:46:44.501231+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Menura novaehollandiae Latham, 1801
- Name authority
- Latham, 1801
- Common name
- Superb Lyrebird
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Menuridae
- Genus
- Menura
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyMenuridae
- genusMenura Latham, 1801
- speciesMenura novaehollandiae Latham, 1801
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Menura. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Albert's LyrebirdMenura alberti Bonaparte, 1850 | MenuridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Latham, & John. (1801). Supplementum Indicis Ornithologici, Sive Systematis Ornithologiae. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3ZSN6. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.