Like many brightly coloured robins of the Petroicidae, it is sexually dimorphic; the male bears a distinctive black-and-white plumage, while the female is a nondescript grey-brown.

[9] Further analysis is needed to confirm initial DNA findings as overlaps in the distribution ranges of the various subspecies (excluding M. c. melvillensis) are recognised.

[14] The darker brown plumage is replaced in successive moults to the black hood of the adult in approximately 50% of males, by the beginning of the third year.

Male hooded robins have been observed to show aggressive, chasing behaviour to other ground foraging insectivores, including jacky winters and willie wagtails.

Injury-feigning displays, including tumbling along the ground, have been observed in both sexes, to distract potential predators and humans that encroach upon occupied nests.

[11] The hooded robin shows a preference for dry open forests, combining acacia and eucalypts with shrubs that offer perching positions relatively close to the ground.

It further benefits from nearby native grass cover with open patches and a complex blend of logs, fallen branches and deeper soils, which provide ideal breeding conditions for small lizards and arthropods – their preferred diet.

Historically high nest predation rates are being exacerbated by altered fire regimes and ongoing reduction in size of quality habitat.

Extensive land clearing for agriculture and the subsequent habitat loss and fragmentation are considered medium risks to the hooded robin’s survival.

[22] Furthermore, extended droughts limiting food resources and changing land-use have been attributed to the disappearance of hooded robins from previously populated areas.