Checklist of the Terrestrial Vertebrate Fauna of Western Australia

Taxonomic checklist of the terrestrial vertebrate fauna for Western Australia

Download the latest version of the WA Checklist (2026) (updated June 2026) for the terrestrial vertebrate fauna of Western Australia. This handy Excel sheet can be modified to suit your needs or imported into other applications. Use the 'SORT' column to restore the list into taxonomic order. The file is a single Excel workbook, with separate sheets for amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. 

The changes from the June 2026 checklist are documented below and can also be downloaded in pdf format. Previous changes to the checklist (2014-2025) can be found listed at the bottom of the page.

A comprehensive update of the WA Checklist is released by the WA Museum every year or as necessary. The WA checklist (2026) contains revisions of the terrestrial vertebrate species of Western Australia and additional information on the conservation status of the WA fauna (provided by the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions). 

The taxonomic changes are based on the work of the WA Museum's Terrestrial Zoology staff, and their many colleagues from around Australia and beyond. In the future, we will try to update the list as new taxonomic changes occur.

Bookmark this page, and keep visiting for the latest updated version. This page is updated twice a year, in April and October.

Please contact the relevant author of the specific list if you have any questions or comments.

Changes to the WA Museum Checklist from September 2025 (updated June 2026)

Reptiles and frogs

No changes.

Birds

Following the IOC checklist version 15.2, the following changes have been made:

• Added Spatula rhynchotis rhynchotis, Australian subspecies recognised after the recognition of the New Zealand subspecies (variegata). See Gill et al. (2010).
• Added Anas castanea alexanderi, as IOC list recognised spp. alexanderi (AviList c2025) for the southwest of Australia.
• Eulabeornis castaneoventris and Hypotaenidia philippensis are moved to genus Gallirallus, following AviList v2025.
• Charadrius dubius, C. cucullatus and C. melanops restored to Thinornis following Černý & Natale (2022) and AviList v2025.
• Stiltia Isabella, formerly attributed to the monotypic genus Stiltia. But despite its unique morphology, phylogenetic analyses place Australian Pratincole in a basal position within the Glareola clade and it is sometimes transferred to that genus (Cohen 2011; Černý and Natale 2022). Move to Glareola following AviList v2025.
• White Tern Gygis alba split into three species, with Australian Tern now being ‘Blue-billed White Tern’, Gygis candida, following Pratt (2020).
• Mangrove Robin moved back to Melanodryas, following AviList v2025.
• White-breasted Robin moved back to Eopsaltria, following AviList v2025.
• Bathilda ruficauda moved to Emblema, following AviList v2025.

Mammals

No changes.