Crow honeyeater

Gymnomyza aubryana

Photo Frédéric Desmoulins (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:

crow honeyeater (en); melífago-preto (pt); méliphage toulou (fr); mielero cuervo (es); rotgesicht-honigfresser (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Meliphagidae

Range:

This species is endemic to the island of New Caledonia, in the Pacific Ocean. It is now restricted to small populations scattered mostly in the southern parts of the island.

Size:

These birds are 35-41 cm long and weigh 200 g.

Habitat:

Crow honeyeaters occur in a humid forest/maquis matrix, usually on ultrabasic soils. They have also been recorded in dry forests and in maquis scrubs up to 2 km away from forested areas. These birds are present at altitudes of 100-1.000 m.

Diet:

They forage on the canopy or mid-storey, feeding on invertebrates and nectar.

Breeding:

Crow honeyeaters nest in a crud cup with a thick wall and little to no lining. The nest is placed at the end of a branch, in a tree 10-20 m above the ground. There the female lays 2 eggs which are incubated for 21 days. The chicks fledge 27 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - CR (Critically endangered)

This species has a very small breeding range and a global population estimated at 50-250 individuals. Although there is no detailed data on population trends, the available information suggests a very rapid decline is taking place. This is mostly due to forest loss and degradation caused by logging, nickel mining and fires, as well to severe predation pressure by introduced rats. Nests are poorly camouflaged and presumably easy to locate, also being depredated by endemic predators such as the New Caledonian crow Corvus moneduloides and the white-bellied goshawk Accipiter haplochrous.

Black honeyeater

Certhionyx niger

Photo by Brett Symons (Flickr)

Common name:

black honeyeater (en); melífago-preto-e-branco (pt); myzomèle cravaté (fr); mielero blanquinegro (es); trauerhonigfresser (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Meliphagidae

Range:

The black honeyeater is endemic to Australia, being found throughout the inland areas of the country.

Size:

These birds are 10-13 cm long and weigh 9-10 g.

Habitat:

The black honeyeater is found in open woodlands and scrublands of arid and semi-arid regions, especially those with an understorey of emu bush Eremophila sp., as well as in mulga or mallee eucalypt woodlands and broombush Melaleuca uncinata. It will also be found in spinifex savanna where flowering scrubs such as grevilleas and paperbarks occur.

Diet:

They eat insects and nectar, particularly the nectar of the emu bush Eremephila sp.

Breeding:

Black honeyeaters breed in July-December. They nest in groups or loose colonies, with males aggressively defending a small breeding territory against members of their own species as well as other honeyeaters. The female builds the shallow, open, cup-shaped nest from fine twigs, grass, and other plant material bound with spiderweb, lining it with grass, roots, fibre, horse hair, flowers or wool. The nest is usually situated low on a dead limb or in a fork of a small tree or scrub. The female lays 2-3 buffy white eggs with reddish-brown spots, which she incubates alone for 15-16 days. Both sexes feed and care for the chicks until fledging, which takes place 16-18 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

This species has a very large breeding range and it is described as locally common. This population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat degradation.

Painted honeyeater

Grantiella picta

(Photo from Flickr)

Common name:

painted honeyeater (en); melífago-pintado (pt); méliphage peint (fr); mielero pintado (es); granthonigfresser (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Meliphagidae

Range:

The painted honeyeater is endemic to mainland Australia, being found in Queensland and New South Wales west of the Great Dividing Range, through to northern Victoria. It is also found occasionally in the Northern Territory.

Size:

These birds are 14-17 cm long and weigh 18-25 g.

Habitat:

The painted honeyeater is mostly found in dry, open forests dominated by Acacia or Eucalyptus. During the breeding season they generally occur in areas with flowering and fruiting mistletoes and eucalypts.

Diet:

Their diet primarily consists of the fruit of Amyema mistletoes, occasionally also eating nectar and insects.

Breeding:

Painted honeyeaters breed in August-February. They breed in loose colonies, forming pair bonds for the duration of the breeding season. Both sexes build the thin, cup-shaped nest from grass and fine roots bound with spiderweb, which hangs by the rim from branches in the drooping outer foliage of trees, 2-20 m above the ground. There the female lays 2 eggs which are incubated by both parents for 13-15 days. The chicks are cared for by both parents and fledge 14-20 days after hatching. Each pair raises 1-2 broods per season.

Conservation:

IUCN status - VU (Vulnerable)

This species has a relatively large breeding range, but it is patchily distributed and the global population is estimated at just 2.500-10.000 individuals. The population is currently declining, mostly due to habitat conversion. Much of its breeding habitat has been cleared altogether or has been reduced to ageing, widely-spaced trees, particularly box-ironbark and boree woodlands and the non-breeding habitat is still being cleared for agriculture and habitat remnants in both the breeding and non-breeding ranges continue to be degraded by grazing.

Regent honeyeater

Xanthomyza phrygia

Photo by Roger Smith (Flickriver)

Common name:

regent honeyeater (en); melífago-regente (pt); méliphage régent (fr); mielero regente (es); warzenhonigfresser (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Meliphagidae

Range:

This species is endemic to south-eastern Australia, mostly being found in north-eastern Victoria, along the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range, New South Wales, and the central coast of New South Wales.

Size:

These birds are 20-24 cm long and have a wingspan of 30 cm. They weigh 40-45 g.

Habitat:

The regent honeyeater is usually found within box-ironbark eucalypt associations, seeming to prefer wetter, more fertile lowland sites. It also uses riparian forests of river she-oak Casuarina cunninghamiana and wet lowland coastal forests dominated by swamp mahogany Eucalyptus robusta or spotted gum Corymbia maculata.

Diet:

They mostly feed on nectar and other plant sugars. They can also feed on insects and spiders, as well as native and cultivated fruits. Nectar is taken mainly from a variety of eucalypt species, especially mugga ironbark, yellow box, white box and yellow gum, and often from mistletoes like the needle-leaf mistletoe and the box mistletoe Amyema miquelii, but also from other plants, both native (Acacia, Banksia and Grevillea) and introduced (Fuchsia and Prunus).

Breeding:

The regent honeyeater breeds in May-March, with a peak in September-November, nesting in individual pairs or, sometimes, in loose colonies. The cup-shaped nests are generally composed of strips of bark and dry grass bound with spider web, usually placed toward the end of large, usually horizontal branches on the crown of an eucalypt up to 20 m above the ground. There the female lays 2-3 pinkish to reddish-buff eggs, which she incubates alone for 12-15 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 13-17 days after hatching, but remain dependent on their parents for another 3-4 weeks.

Conservation:

IUCN status - EN (Endangered)

This species has a small and fragmented breeding range, and the global population size is estimated at just 1.500 individuals. About 75% of its habitat has been cleared for agriculture and residential development, and remaining habitat is fragmented and continues to decline in quality, thus the population is suspected to be in decline, although the rate of decline has not been estimated. Habitat fragmentation has apparently advantaged more aggressive honeyeaters, particularly the noisy miner Manorina melanocephala, which may be excluding regent honeyeater from some areas.

Strong-billed honeyeater

Melithreptus validirostris

Photo by Geoff Walker (Bushpea)

Common name:

strong-billed honeyeater (en); melífago-de-bico-grosso (pt); méliphage à bec fort (fr); mielero picudo (es); starkschnabel-honigschmecker (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Meliphagidae

Range:

The strong-billed honeyeater is endemic to Tasmania.

Size:

These birds are 15-17,5 cm long and weigh 25 g.

Habitat:

The Strong-billed Honeyeater is mostly found in mature, wet forest, cool temperate rainforest, wet scrub and heath, and occasionally in parks and gardens. It is often associated with large trees such as Eucalyptus regnans and E. delegatensis.

Diet:

They mainly eat insects and various other invertebrates, which they hunt on tree trunks, supplemented by nectar and fallen fruits.

Breeding:

These monogamous birds nest in September-January. They form small colonies and nest-building is a communal affair with all the mature birds contributing to construct a small but deep, cup-shaped nest from strips of bark. The nest is lined with soft bark and plant and animal fibres and hangs by its rim from the outer foliage of eucalypts or shrubs. The female lays 2-3 spotted pinkish eggs which are incubated by both parents for 15 days. The chicks are fed by both parents, who are assisted by older siblings and other adults in raising young chicks. the chicks fledge 16 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

Although this species may have a restricted breeding range, it is described as common over this range. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Eastern spinebill

Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris

Common name:

eastern spinebill (en); melífago-oriental (pt); méliphage à bec grêle (fr); picoespina oriental (es); rotnacken-honigfresser (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Meliphagidae

Range:

This species is found in south-eastern Australia, east of the Great Dividing Range from Cooktown in Queensland to the Flinders Ranges in South Australia. They are also present throughout Tasmania.

Size:

They are 13-16 cm long and weigh 11 g.

Habitat:

Eastern spinebills prefer dry sclerophyll forests, scrubland and heathland. They are also common in urban gardens, even in large cities like Sidney and Melbourne.

Diet:

These birds feed on the nectar of many plants, including the blooms of gum trees, mistletoes Amyema spp., Epacris longiflora, common heath Epacris impressa, Correa reflexa, and various members of the Proteaceae such as Banksia ericifolia, Banksia spinulosa, Banksia integrifolia, Lambertia formosa and Grevillea speciosa, as well as exotic plants such as Fuchsia. They also eat small insects and other invertebrates.

Breeding:

The eastern spinebill breeds in August-January. The female builds the nest, consisting of a small cup of twigs, grass and bark, combined with hair and spider's web, built in a tree fork, generally 1-5 m above the ground. The female lays 2-3 whitish spotted eggs, which she incubates alone or 14 days. Both parents feed the young, which fledge 14 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least concern)

This species has a large breeding range. The population size is yet to be quantified, and is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction. Still, this species is not considered threatened at present.

New Zealand bellbird

Anthornis melanura

Photo by Richard Thomas (The Guardian)

Common name:

New Zealand bellbird (en); melifago-maori (pt); méliphage carillonneur (fr); mielero maorí (es); Maori-glockenhonigfresser (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Meliphagidae

Range:

This species is endemic to New Zealand, being found throughout the main islands of the country with the exception of the extreme north of the North Island, and also in several offshore islands and the Auckland Islands.

Size:

New Zealand bellbirds are 20 cm long. Males weigh 34 g while females weigh just 26 g.

Habitat:

Their natural habitat are the indigenous temperate forests of New Zealand. They can also be found in temperate scrubland, rural gardens and plantations and even within urban areas.

Diet:

They mostly eat nectar, honeydew and fruits. They also take insects to some extent.

Breeding:

The New Zealand bellbird breed in September-December. The nest is mostly built by the female, consisting of a loose bag of twigs and coarse grasses, lined with fine grasses, feathers and leaves. The nest is either placed on a dense forest canopy or on a rock face concealed by dense vegetation. The female lays 2-4 pinkish-white eggs with red-brown blotches, which she incubates alone for 14-16 days. Only the female broods the nestlings, by their are fed by both parents. The chicks fledge 16-20 days after hatching but continue to be fed by the parents for at least 7 more days.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

Although the global population size is yet to be determined, this species as a relatively large breeding range. The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and the effects of introduced mammals, namely cats, stoats, weasels, ferrets and rats, which depredate their eggs, and introduced wasps which compete for food. Still, this species is not considered threatened at present.