The Noisy Pitta (Pitta versicolor) is a colourful species with a chestnut crown, green and black wings, muted yellow underparts, a bright blue shoulder patch, a black facial stripe and a red patch under the tail.
They are found in rainforest in eastern Australia, as far south as the Hunter Region in New South Wales, in the islands in the Torres Strait and southern New Guinea. Their habitats include wet and dry sclerophyll forests and woodlands. They are seasonal travellers and can be found close to the coast during winter (including in mangrove swamp areas).
They can be seen raking through the leaf litter searching for and eating mostly snails and insects, but will also eat worms, spiders, and other small invertebrates. Snails are repeatedly bashed against a rock or log to break their shell before they are eaten and these snail shell remains can often be found accumulated over the years, as they return to the same areas in search of food. They will occasionally eat fruit.
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Aves
- Order: Passeriformes
- Family: Pittidae
- Genus: Pitta
- Species: P. versicolor
- Binomial name: Pitta versicolor
- Synonyms: Pitta strepitans