Measuring 13.5 cm (5.3 in) in length, the robin has a small, thin, black bill, and dark brown eyes and legs.

[5][6] Sibley and Ahlquist's DNA-DNA hybridisation studies placed this group in a Corvida parvorder comprising many tropical and Australian passerines, including pardalotes, fairy-wrens, honeyeaters, and crows.

[10] The pink robin is 13.5 cm (5.5 in) long and displays sexual dimorphism – the males and females have plumage which differ markedly.

Spider webs, feathers and fur are used for binding or filling, and the nest is generally placed in a tree fork up to 5 m (15 ft) above the ground.

The eggs, which measure 18 by 14 mm, are greyish-, greenish- or blueish-white, and are marked with dark brown and lavender splotches and spots, usually concentrated around the large end.