From Opus

Photo by Neil

Pardalotus striatus

[edit] Identification

9.5cm - 11 cm. There is considerable variation in plumage characteristics across the range of this species. All birds have white eyebrows with a yellow spot in front of the eye, olive-grey backs and a white stripe in the wing. In different parts of the country, the wing stripe may be narrow or wide, the coloured spot at the front end of this stripe may be red or yellow, and the black crown may have or lack fine white stripes. Both male and female are similar in plumage.

[edit] Distribution

Australia including Tasmania.

[edit] Taxonomy

Six subspecies are recognized:

• uropygialis
• melvillensis
• melanocephalus
• ornatus
• striatus
• substriatus

Photo by Rose Fletcher
Nangawooka Flora Reserve, Victor Harbor, South Australia, January 2009

[edit] Habitat

Trees or shrubs, especially eucalypt forests and woodlands.

[edit] Behaviour

It feeds in the foliage in the tops of trees. The diet includes a wide variety of insects and their larvae.

The nest is constructed close to the ground, usually in a tree hollow or tunnel, excavated in an earthen bank. 3-5 white eggs are laid; both sexes incubate and care for the young birds. Other members of the group may also help with the feeding of the young.

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.

• List of references

[edit] External Links

• View more images of this species on the ABID