---
title: "Mérion violacé"
description: "Malurus assimilis — Oiseaux. The purple-backed fairywren (Malurus assimilis) is a fairywren that is native to Australia."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/fr/animal/purple-backed-fairywren
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Mérion violacé

> Malurus assimilis — Oiseaux. The purple-backed fairywren (Malurus assimilis) is a fairywren that is native to Australia.

- Scientific name: *Malurus assimilis*
- Category: `birds` (Oiseaux)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 2144
- Wikidata: [Q48798163](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q48798163)
- iNaturalist taxon: [827392](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/827392)

## Names

- en: Purple-backed Fairywren
- de: Purpurrückenstaffelschwanz
- es: Maluro de espalda morada
- fr: Mérion violacé
- nl: Roestschouderelfje

## Countries with the most observations

AU (2087)

## Summary

The purple-backed fairywren (Malurus assimilis) is a fairywren that is native to Australia. Described by Alfred John North in 1901, it has four recognised subspecies. In a species that exhibits sexual dimorphism, the brightly coloured breeding male has chestnut shoulders and azure crown and ear coverts, while non-breeding males, females and juveniles have predominantly grey-brown plumage, although females of two subspecies have mainly blue-grey plumage. Distributed over much of the Australian continent, the purple-backed fairywren is found in scrubland with plenty of vegetation providing dense cover.

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

## Photo

![Mérion violacé](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/purple-backed-fairywren/medium.jpg)

Photo: Astrid Osborne · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/201427804

## Machine access

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