The brightly coloured crown, ear tufts and upper back are prominently featured in breeding displays.
M. c. cyanochlamys, described by Richard Sharpe in 1881, is found on mainland Australia; in general, birds are smaller and paler than those of Tasmania, with Queensland male birds bearing a pale silvery blue crown, ear tufts and mantle.
The male in breeding plumage has a silvery blue crown, ear coverts and upper back, a black throat and nape, bright red-brown shoulders, a long grey-brown tail and wings, and greyish-white belly.
Exhibiting a high degree of sexual dimorphism, the male adopts a brilliantly coloured breeding plumage, with an iridescent silvery-blue crown, ear coverts and upper back, red shoulders, contrasting with a black throat, grey-brown tail and wings and pale underparts.
Males have a rufous wash on crown, nape, ears, and back; underside conspicuously washed pinkish-brown.
And on this account her statue is crowned with ears of corn, and poppies are set round her as a symbol of productiveness.
The present species is further distinguished by its otherwise extensively blue wings, blue fore-face, largely reddish uppertail (in males), and olive-brown crown and ear coverts.
The brightly coloured crown and ear tufts are prominently featured in breeding displays.
More specifically, the nominate subspecies has a grey forehead, crown, nape, ear-coverts and throat with the face a darker grey-black.
