From Opus

Photo by Tom Tarrant
Photograhed: Samsonvale, SE Qld.

Alternative name: Little Wattlebird

Anthochaera chrysoptera

Disambiguation: For the species Anthochaera lunulata, see Little Wattlebird

[edit] Identification

Dark grey-brown above, faint white shafts on each of the feathers, grey underparts heavily streaked with white, blue-grey eye. The sexes are similar.

[edit] Distribution

Eastern and southern Australia and Tasmania.

[edit] Taxonomy

Three subspecies are recognized for this species: chrysoptera, halmaturina, and tasmanica. Little Wattlebird was recently split from the present species. There has been disagreement on which name to apply to each of the two forms and so both are sometimes called Little Wattlebird.

[edit] Habitat

Heaths, forests, woodlands and urban parks and gardens.

[edit] Behaviour

Their diet includes nectar, which is obtained using a long, brush-tipped tongue, specially adapted to probing deep into flowers, insects, flowers, berries and some seeds.

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.

[edit] External Links