Disambiguation: For the species Anthochaera lunulata, see Western Wattlebird
Alternative name: Brush Wattlebird
- Anthochaera chrysoptera
Identification
27–35 cm (10½-13¾ in)
- Dark greyish-brown upperparts
- Faint white shafts on each of the feathers
- Grey underparts heavily streaked with white
- Blue-grey eye
- Sexes similar
Distribution
Eastern and southern Australia (New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria) and Tasmania.
Taxonomy
Western Wattlebird was recently split from this species. There has been disagreement on which name to apply to each of the two forms; Little Wattlebird has been used for both forms.
Subspecies
Three subspecies are recognized for this species[1]:
- A. c. chrysoptera:
- Eastern Australia (south-eastern Queensland to southern Victoria and south-eastern South Australia)
- A. c. halmaturina:
- Kangaroo Island (South Australia)
- A. c. tasmanica:
- Eastern and northern Tasmania
Habitat
Drier, often scrubby, habitats such as banksia heaths, forests, eucalypt woodlands and urban parks and gardens.
Behaviour
Diet
They have a long brush-tipped tongue which is used to probe into flowers to get the nectar. They also eat insects, flowers, berries and occasionally seeds.
Breeding
The female constructs the nest, which is a large cup of twigs and grass, lined with feathers and wool. She incubates the eggs, but both parents care for the young.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Avibase
- Birds in Backyards
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Little Wattlebird. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Little_Wattlebird
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
