Manorina

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Manorina
Manorina flavigula.jpg
Yellow-throated miner (Manorina flavigula)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Meliphagidae
Genus: Manorina
Vieillot, 1818
Type species
Manorina viridis [1]
Vieillot, 1818

Manorina is a genus of Australian endemic honeyeaters, containing four species: the black-eared miner (M. melanotis) the yellow-throated miner (M. flavigula), the noisy miner (M. melanocephala) and the bell miner (M. melanophrys). The genus is notable for the complex social organisation of its species, which live in colonies that can be further subdivided into coteries and nest contingents.

Contents

Description

The four species are stockily built honeyeaters with rounded wings and yellow bills. One of their most obvious characteristics is a patch of bare yellow skin behind the eyes, which gives them an odd 'cross-eyed' look. [2] They are predominantly insectivorous and feed by gleaning. Their nests sit on other structures (such as tree branches) rather than hang down. [2]

Taxonomy

Noisy miner (M. melanocephala) Manorina melanocephala 2.jpg
Noisy miner (M. melanocephala)

The genus was first described by French naturalist Louis Pierre Vieillot in volume 19 of his work Nouveau Dictionnaire d'Histoire Naturelle, appliquée aux arts, principalement à l'Agriculture, à l'Écomomie rurale et domestique, à la Médecine, etc. Par une société de naturalistes et d'agriculteurs. Nouvelle Édition in 1818. Later it was misspelt as Manorhina, but is now spelt in its original manner. [3]

Richard Schodde felt the genus was related to the black-headed honeyeaters of the genus Melithreptus and the blue-faced honeyeater (Entomyzon cyanotis) based on their behaviour and appearance. [2] However, DNA sampling in a 2004 study by Amy Driskell and Les Christidis showed that the genus was most closely related to the New Guinea genus Melidectes , and that cooperative breeding evolved independently in more than one lineage of honeyeater. [4] The genus Manorina is divided into two subgenera. The bell miner has a predominantly greenish plumage, different calls and skeletal differences and is possibly an early offshoot. It is classified in the subgenus Manorina while the other three form the subgenus Myzantha. The latter had been previously classified as a separate genus, but reclassified within this one by German ornithologist Hans Friedrich Gadow in 1884. [2]

The name "miner" derives from a mid 19th century re-spelling of the Hindi name "myna", which they resemble, but was not formally adopted until the early 20th century. [5]

Subgenera and species

SubgenusImageCommon nameScientific nameDistribution
Manorina Bell Miner2.jpg Bell miner Manorina melanophryssoutheastern Australia
Myzantha Gelbstirn Schwatzvogel.jpg Yellow-throated miner Manorina flavigulaAustralia
Noisy Miner on flowers.jpg Noisy miner Manorina melanocephalaeastern and south-eastern Australia
Black-eared Miner (Manorina melanotis) (8079664126).jpg Black-eared miner Manorina melanotiswestern Victoria and south-eastern South Australia.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Honeyeater</span> Family of birds

The honeyeaters are a large and diverse family, Meliphagidae, of small to medium-sized birds. The family includes the Australian chats, myzomelas, friarbirds, wattlebirds, miners and melidectes. They are most common in Australia and New Guinea, and found also in New Zealand, the Pacific islands as far east as Samoa and Tonga, and the islands to the north and west of New Guinea known as Wallacea. Bali, on the other side of the Wallace Line, has a single species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australasian wren</span> Family of birds

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noisy miner</span> Bird in the honeyeater family from eastern Australia

The noisy miner is a bird in the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae, and is endemic to eastern and southeastern Australia. This miner is a grey bird, with a black head, orange-yellow beak and feet, a distinctive yellow patch behind the eye, and white tips on the tail feathers. The Tasmanian subspecies has a more intense yellow panel in the wing, and a broader white tip to the tail. Males, females and juveniles are similar in appearance, though young birds are a brownish-grey. As the common name suggests, the noisy miner is a vocal species with a large range of songs, calls, scoldings and alarms, and almost constant vocalisations, particularly from young birds. One of four species in the genus Manorina, the noisy miner itself is divided into four subspecies. The separation of the Tasmanian M. m. leachi is of long standing, and the mainland birds were further split in 1999.

<i>Anthochaera</i> Genus of birds

Anthochaera is a genus of birds in the honeyeater family. The species are endemic to Australia and include the little wattlebird, the red wattlebird, the western wattlebird, and the yellow wattlebird. A molecular phylogenetic study has shown that the regent honeyeater also belongs in this genus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bell miner</span> Species of bird

The bell miner, commonly known as the bellbird, is a colonial honeyeater, endemic to southeastern Australia. The common name refers to their bell-like call. 'Miner' is an old alternative spelling of 'myna', and is shared with other members of the genus Manorina. The birds feed almost exclusively on the dome-like coverings, referred to as 'bell lerps', of certain psyllid bugs that feed on eucalyptus sap from the leaves. The psyllids make these bell lerps from their own honeydew secretions in order to protect themselves from predators and the environment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blue-faced honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The blue-faced honeyeater, also colloquially known as the Bananabird, is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae. It is the only member of its genus, and it is most closely related to honeyeaters of the genus Melithreptus. Three subspecies are recognised. At around 29.5 cm (11.6 in) in length, the blue-faced species is large for a honeyeater. Its plumage is distinctive, with olive upperparts, white underparts, and a black head and throat with white nape and cheeks. Males and females are similar in external appearance. Adults have a blue area of bare skin on each side of the face readily distinguishing them from juveniles, which have yellow or green patches of bare skin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-browed pardalote</span> Species of bird

The red-browed pardalote is a small brightly coloured insectivorous passerine, endemic to Australia. A gleaning specialist, they forage primarily in eucalypt trees . The Latin word rubricatus means 'red-ochred' which is descriptive of their orange-red eyebrow. Other common names include red-browed diamondbird, bellbird, cape red-browed, pale red-browed, fawn-eyed, fawn-eyebrowed and pallid or red-lored pardalote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scarlet myzomela</span> Species of bird

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-naped honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The white-naped honeyeater is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family Meliphagidae native to eastern Australia. Birds from southwestern Australia have been shown to be a distinct species, Gilbert's honeyeater, and the eastern birds are more closely related to the black-headed honeyeater of Tasmania. One of several similar species of black-headed honeyeaters in the genus Melithreptus, it dwells in dry sclerophyll eucalypt woodland. Its diet consists of nectar from various flowers, and it also feeds on insects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-cheeked honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The white-cheeked honeyeater is a species of honeyeater that inhabits the east coast and the south-west corner of Australia. It has a large white patch on its cheek, brown eyes, and a yellow panel on its wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-throated honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The white-throated honeyeater is a bird of the honeyeater family Meliphagidae native to New Guinea and eastern and northern Australia. It is 11.5 to 14.5 cm long, olive-green above and white below, with a black head, a white or pale blue patch over the eye, and a white stripe across the nape.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-throated miner</span> Species of bird

The yellow-throated miner is a species of colonial honeyeater, endemic to Australia. It is also known as the white-rumped miner. The distinctive white rump is easy to observe in the field and distinguishes it from the other miner species. Yellow-throated miners are medium-sized, grey passerines with yellow throat markings, legs, and bare patches around the eye. The common name 'miner' is an alternative spelling of the word myna, mynah or minah, and is shared with other members of the genus Manorina. Though miners were originally named due to their resemblance to the common myna of South and Southeast Asia that shares similar yellow eye-patch and legs, common mynas are from the starling family and are not closely related to the honeyeater family. Common mynas are an aggressive introduced pest in Australia, which causes some confusion with the native aggressive miners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helmeted honeyeater</span> Subspecies of bird

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<i>Epthianura</i> Genus of birds

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tawny-crowned honeyeater</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Painted honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The painted honeyeater is a species of honeyeater in a monotypic genus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangrove honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The mangrove honeyeater 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-chinned honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The black-chinned honeyeater is a species of passerine bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to Australia. Two subspecies are recognised. Its natural habitats are temperate forests and subtropical or tropical dry forests.

References

  1. "Melaphagidae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Schodde, Richard; Mason, Ian J. (1999). The Directory of Australian Birds: Passerines. A Taxonomic and Zoogeographic Atlas of the Biodiversity of Birds in Australia and its Territories. Collingwood, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. ISBN   9780643102934.
  3. Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (30 August 2011). "Subgenus Manorina (Manorina) Vieillot, 1818". Australian Faunal Directory. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian Government. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  4. Driskell, Amy C.; Christidis, Les (2004). "Phylogeny and Evolution of the Australo-Papuan Honeyeaters (Passeriformes, Meliphagidae)" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 31 (3): 943–60. Bibcode:2004MolPE..31..943D. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2003.10.017. PMID   15120392. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-05-01.
  5. "The Bell Miner: orthography and ornithology catalyse a folk etymology". www.cjvlang.com. Retrieved 2015-10-18.