The Olive Whistler may have the most rich and musical calls of all the whistlers.
The Olive Whistler is a medium-sized stocky bird. The males have grey heads, with a whitish throat. The upperparts are reddish-brown to grey and the underparts are a lighter reddish-brown. Females are similar, but generally less colourful. Immature birds have more rufous wings and blotches of paler feathers on the head.
Olive Whistlers may resemble females of the related Golden Whistler,P. pectoralis, but these are grey to white underneath, with yellow near the vent.
The Olive Whistler is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It occurs from the coast to the Great Dividing Range, ranging from Tasmania and south-east South Australia, through New South Wales to the McPherson Range in south-east Queensland. Olive Whistlers are usually uncommon throughout their range.
The northern population of Olive Whistlers is found in mountain rainforests above 500 m to 1500 m, especially Antarctic Beech forests. In the south, Olive Whistlers occur in dense vegetation of eucalypt forests, rainforests, paperbarks, alpine forests and coastal scrubs and heathlands.
The Olive Whistler is said to be sedentary or can show some local altitudinal movements, moving to lower areas in winter.
The Olive Whistler mainly feeds on invertebrates, some seed and leaves. It forages from the trees down to the ground, usually in dense vegetation.
The Olive Whistler builds a cup-shaped nest of twigs, leaves and bark placed 1-3m off the ground in shrubs, trees or dense grass. The eggs are incubated by both parents.
The logging of mountain forests may adversely affect the Olive Whistler. It is listed as vulnerable in New South Wales.
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