---
title: "Splendid Fairywren"
description: "Malurus splendens — Birds. The splendid fairywren (Malurus splendens) is a passerine bird in the Australasian wren family, Maluridae."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/splendid-fairywren
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Splendid Fairywren

> Malurus splendens — Birds. The splendid fairywren (Malurus splendens) is a passerine bird in the Australasian wren family, Maluridae.

- Scientific name: *Malurus splendens*
- Category: `birds` (Birds)
- Habitats: `savanna` (Savanna), `desert` (Desert)
- iNaturalist observations: 3738
- Wikidata: [Q850528](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q850528)
- iNaturalist taxon: [12083](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12083)

## Names

- en: Splendid Fairywren
- de: Türkisstaffelschwanz
- es: Maluro espléndido
- fr: Mérion splendide
- nl: Prachtelfje
- pl: Chwostka wspaniała

## Countries with the most observations

AU (3621)

## Summary

The splendid fairywren (Malurus splendens) is a passerine bird in the Australasian wren family, Maluridae. It is also known simply as the splendid wren or more colloquially in Western Australia as the blue wren. The splendid fairywren is found across much of the Australian continent from central-western New South Wales and southwestern Queensland over to coastal Western Australia. It inhabits predominantly arid and semiarid regions. Exhibiting a high degree of sexual dimorphism, the male in breeding plumage is a small, long-tailed bird of predominantly bright blue and black colouration. Nonbreeding males, females…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Splendid_fairywren

## Photo

![Splendid Fairywren](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/splendid-fairywren/medium.jpg)

Photo: Joshua S. Martin · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/247621994

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/splendid-fairywren?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).