Mangrove honeyeater | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Meliphagidae |
Genus: | Gavicalis |
Species: | G. fasciogularis |
Binomial name | |
Gavicalis fasciogularis (Gould, 1854) | |
Synonyms | |
Lichenostomus fasciogularis |
The mangrove honeyeater (Gavicalis fasciogularis) is a species of bird in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. The species was once considered to be conspecific with the varied honeyeater, but it is now treated as a separate species. These two species form a genus with the singing honeyeater.
It is endemic to Australia, where it is restricted to the eastern coast from Townsville in Queensland to northern New South Wales. The species has been expanding its range southward in recent years. The mangrove honeyeater is generally locally common over most of its range, but is rarer in the south.
There are 177 species of honeyeaters in 40 genera, including the Blue-faced honeyeater (Entomyzon cyanotis), Bell miner (Manorina melanophrys), Stitchbird (Notiomystis cincta), Western spinebill (Acanthorhynchus superciliosus), and the Wattlebirds of the genus Anthochaera.
Mangrove Honeyeaters are small to medium-sized nectar eating birds. Its plumage is olive-brown above, grading to greyish-brown on rump and uppertail-coverts, with fine dark streaking on top of head and hindneck. There is olive mottling on uppertail-coverts and broad black mask extending well down side of neck. A narrow yellow moustachial stripe exists that ends in small white tuft. It meets large greyish-white patch on lower side of neck and the tail and upperwing are olive-brown in color. The chin and throat are finely barred dark grey-brown and dull yellow in color. Its legs are colored in dark grey or bluish-grey. The back is dark-grey; only the flight feathers have yellowish-olive leading edges. The irises are dark blue-grey. The slightly down-curved bill is dark-grey. Male weighs between 23.9g to 33.1g and the female weighs between 22g to 30g. [2]
The mangrove honeyeater was previously placed in the genus Lichenostomus , but was moved to Gavicalis after a molecular phylogenetic analysis, published in 2011, showed that the original genus was polyphyletic.[ citation needed ]
Mangrove honeyeaters are found in Coastal Australia from Northeast Queensland near Townsville as well as in islands from Whitsunday Islands, Moreton Bay, and Northeast New South Wales. They are found mainly in Mangrove forests and woodlands fringing coasts, bays, estuaries and islands. They are less likely to be found in coastal shrubland, woodland or scrub (e.g. of Eucalyptus , Banksia , Melaleuca or combinations of these) near mangroves. The mangrove honeyeaters are a regular visitor to parks and gardens in some towns near mangroves. [2]
In Australia three species are largely restricted to mangroves. It is not uncommon to find ten or more species at a location in forests and coastal heathlands. Woodlands, mallee, and other semi-arid scrubs are also rich in species. Within forests and woodlands, most species occupy the canopy, with some of the more nectarivorous species feeding more in the shrub layer. [3]
Mangrove honeyeaters are monogamous, although polygamy or a mixed mating system is present in species with great sexual dimorphism. Honeyeaters lay 1-5 eggs (average 2). The eggs are white, pinkish colored, or buff with reddish-brown spots. Their incubation period is 12–17 days, while their nesting period lasts for 10–30 days. [4]
Mangrove honeyeaters usually feed on nectar and invertebrates, and sometimes fruit. The invertebrates they eat include insects, marine snails, and crab. Honeyeaters forage mainly in mangroves ( Aegiceras, Rhizophora ), among outer foliage, in flowers, trees, and shrubs. [2] Other sweet food sources include honeydew from bugs (Hemiptera), manna (sugary exudate from damaged foliage), and lerp (the sugary coating on scale insects of the family Psyllidae). Honeyeaters also consume sap exuding from scars on branches caused by gliding possums. [3]
The song is loud, melodious and ringing, but varying, e.g. “whit-u-we-u”. It is classified as scolding chatter. Small honeyeaters are often musical, while larger ones make a larger raucous sound. [2]
The breeding period is between August–December. The peak month is September. In northern regions, the breeding period lasts between April–May. Their nests are cup-shaped and are made of dried grasses and seagrass or plant fibre, which are bound with spider web and matted egg sacs. They are lined with fine rootlets or fine grass. For two nests, the external diameter is 8·9–9·5 cm, the depth is 5·7–7·6 cm, and the internal diameter is 6·4–7·6 cm. Nests are suspended by rim, and occasionally supported, they are 0·5–2·7 m above ground. They are small in size, and are found in dense mangroves. Both adults feed nestlings and fledglings. Nests are parasitized by Pallid ( Heteroscenes pallidus ) and Fan-tailed Cuckoos (Cacomantis flabelliformis). [2]
They are a local resident of Moreton Bay, in SE Queensland. The numbers increase in May–Jun and decline during Jul–Dec. This movement is a possible result of local seasonal changes.
The mangrove honeyeaters have benefited from land-clearing and fragmentation in southern Western Australia and are able to fly over open agricultural lands. They have been implicated in the spread of the noxious weed Bridal Creeper, Asparagus medeoloides. [5]
The mangrove honeyeater is not globally threatened. They have restricted range and the population size is not quantified, but is not considered vulnerable due to the size of its range. The range is thought to have expanded over the last 50 years, with first records if the bird at Yamba in 1947, and some following records farther south. [2]
The scarlet myzomela or scarlet honeyeater is a small passerine bird of the honeyeater family Meliphagidae native to Australia. It was first described by English ornithologist John Latham in 1801. At 9 to 11 cm long, it is the smallest honeyeater in Australia. It has a short tail and relatively long down-curved bill. It is sexually dimorphic; the male is a striking bright red with black wings, while the female is entirely brown. The species is more vocal than most honeyeaters, and a variety of calls have been recorded, including a bell-like tinkling.
The white-plumed honeyeater is a small passerine bird endemic to Australia. White-plumed honeyeaters are common around water and are often seen in backyards and suburbs with vegetation cover.
The yellow-faced honeyeater is a small to medium-sized bird in the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae. It takes its common and scientific names from the distinctive yellow stripes on the sides of its head. Its loud, clear call often begins twenty or thirty minutes before dawn. It is widespread across eastern and southeastern Australia, in open sclerophyll forests from coastal dunes to high-altitude subalpine areas, and woodlands along creeks and rivers. Comparatively short-billed for a honeyeater, it is thought to have adapted to a diet of flies, spiders, and beetles, as well as nectar and pollen from the flowers of plants, such as Banksia and Grevillea, and soft fruits. It catches insects in flight as well as gleaning them from the foliage of trees and shrubs.
The yellow-tufted honeyeater is a passerine bird found in the south-east ranges of Australia. A predominantly black and yellow honeyeater, it is split into four subspecies.
The western spinebill is a honeyeater found in the heath and woodland of south-western Australia. Ranging between 12–16 centimetres (4.7–6.3 in) long, it weighs around 10 grams (0.35 oz). It has a black head, gray back and wings, with a red band behind its neck and from its throat to its breast. Its curved bill is long and slender.
The white-eared honeyeater is a medium-sized honeyeater found in Australia. It is a member of the family Meliphagidae which has 190 recognised species with about half of them found in Australia. This makes them members of the most diverse family of birds in Australia. White-eared honeyeaters are easily identifiable by their olive-green body, black head and white ear-patch.
The brown honeyeater is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It belongs to the honeyeaters, a group of birds which have highly developed brush-tipped tongues adapted for nectar feeding. Honeyeaters are found mainly in Australia, New Guinea, and parts of Indonesia, but the brown honeyeater is unique in that it also occurs on the island of Bali, making it the only honeyeater to be found west of the Wallace Line, the biogeographical boundary between the Australian-Papuan and Oriental zoogeographical regions.
The singing honeyeater is a small bird found in Australia, and is part of the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. The bird lives in a wide range of shrubland, woodland, and coastal habitat. It is relatively common and is widespread right across Australia west of the Great Dividing Range, through to the west coast and on Western Australian coastal islands. It does not occur in other countries.
The striped honeyeater is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae, found in Australia. It is a medium-sized honeyeater, about 23 cm (9.1 in) in length. Both sexes are a light greyish brown with dark brown centres to the feathers, which give the appearance of stripes. The stripes are particularly distinct on the head and back of the neck. While it is found mainly in inland eastern Australia where it inhabits the drier open forest, it is also found in coastal swamp forest from southeast Queensland to the central coast of New South Wales.
The spiny-cheeked honeyeater is the only species in the genus Acanthagenys. It is large for a honeyeater, ranging from 22 to 27 centimeters tall and weighing around 52 grams. The birds are sociable, aggressive, and often observed foraging in large flocks.
The banded honeyeater is a species of honeyeater in the family Meliphagidae with a characteristic narrow black band across its white underparts. It is endemic to tropical northern Australia.
The yellow-throated honeyeater is a species of passerine bird in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. It is similar in behaviour and appearance to the white-eared honeyeater and is endemic to Australia's island state of Tasmania. It was formerly considered a pest of orchards.
The fuscous honeyeater is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to eastern Australia, where it inhabits subtropical and tropical dry forests.
The grey-headed honeyeater is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to Australia.
The yellow-plumed honeyeater is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to Australia, where it inhabits temperate forests and Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation.
The grey-fronted honeyeater is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to Australia. Its natural habitat is Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation. The grey-fronted honeyeater was originally described in 1841 by English ornithologist John Gould as Lichenostomus plumulus. It was moved to the genus Ptilotula after a molecular phylogenetic analysis, published in 2011, showed that Lichenostomus was polyphyletic.
The varied honeyeater is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is found in coastal areas of New Guinea and eastern Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, Australia. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical mangrove forests.
The red-headed myzomela or red-headed honeyeater is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family Meliphagidae found in Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. It was described by John Gould in 1840. Two subspecies are recognised, with the nominate race M. e. erythrocephala distributed around the tropical coastline of Australia, and M. e. infuscata in New Guinea. Though widely distributed, the species is not abundant within this range. While the IUCN lists the Australian population of M. e. infuscata as being near threatened, as a whole the widespread range means that its conservation is of least concern.
Gilbert's honeyeater, also known as the Swan River honeyeater or western white-naped honeyeater, is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family Meliphagidae native to southwestern Australia. A mid-sized honeyeater, it is olive-green above and white below, with a black head, nape and throat and a white patch over the eye and a white crescent-shaped patch on the nape. The bill is brownish-black and the eyes a dull red. The sexes have similar plumage.
Ptilotula is a genus of honeyeater consisting of species occurring in Australia and Papua New Guinea. The genus consists of six former members of Lichenostomus, and was created after a molecular analysis showed the genus was polyphyletic. The International Ornithologists' Union accepted this change and officially included the genus in reference lists from 2013. The type species is the yellow-tinted honeyeater. Birds in this genus typically occupy dry open forest and woodland habitats, and can be found in arid and semi-arid environments.