Yellow Thornbill

Subspecies nana
Photo by Neil Fifer, Newcastle, New South Wales, April 2004

Acanthiza nana

Identification

8·5–10 cm (3¼-4 in)

• Greenish-olive upperparts
• White streaks on the cheeks and ears
• Yellow underparts
• Reddish-brown chin and throat
• Dark eyes
  

Young birds are similar but duller

Similar Species

Brown Thornbill

Distribution

Graphic by Nrg800

Eastern Australia: found in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Victoria

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 3 subspecies^[1]:

• A. n. flava:

• North-eastern Queensland (Atherton Tableland to Paluma Range)

• A. n. nana:

• Coastal south-eastern Australia (Moreton Bay, Queensland, to Eden, New South Wales)

• A. n. modesta:

• Central and eastern Queensland to southern Victoria and south-eastern South Australia

Habitat

Dry open forests, woods and shrublands, mostly with casuarina, acacia trees, also parks and gardens.

Behaviour

Diet

Subspecies modesta
Photo by julien
Eagle Point, Victoria, Australia, January 2005

Their main diet consists of insects; ants, beetles and flies etc.

Breeding

The domed nest is made from grass and bark, with a soft lining from feathers, fur or plant down etc. and has an entrance near the top. It is built by the female. The eggs are incubated by the female, both parents feeing the young, possible with helpers.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved November 2014)
4. Birds in Backyards

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Yellow Thornbill. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 25 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Yellow_Thornbill

External Links

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