Flier's high, ripped about account (9)

I believe the answer is:

thornbill

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'flier's' is the definition.
(thornbill is a kind of birdanimal)

'about account' is the wordplay.
'about' becomes 'thorn' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'account' becomes 'bill' (synonyms).
'thorn'+'bill'='THORNBILL'

'high ripped' acts as a link.
This may not be correct. Some or all of it may belong to another bit of the clue.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for thornbill that I've seen before include "Warbler" , "Hummingbird" , "bird" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.

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