Photo © by Joseph Morlan
Mount Austen, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, 19 September 2019
- Dicaeum aeneum
Identification
8 cm (3¼ in.).
A tiny, dumpy, short-tailed little bird.
- Grey upperparts
- White throat patch
- Scarlet breast patch
- Yellow-green flanks.
Female lacks scarlet breast patch and has instead a creamy white stripe from chin to belly. Juvenile similar to female but has blended gray throat and pale bill.
Variations
Race malaitae most distinctive for its longer, thinner bill.
Distribution
Solomon Islands endemic.
Taxonomy
This is a polytypic species
Subspecies
Three subspecies currently recognized[1].
- D. a. aeneum – Bougainville, Choiseul, Ysabel and adj. n Solomon Is.
- D. a. becki – Guadalcanal and Florida I. (Solomon Is.).
- D. a. malaitae – Malaita I. (Solomon Is.)
Birds from Florida Island sometimes attributed to nominate[2].
Habitat
Occurs in all available forest and scrub habitats, usually in canopy but also frequently in understory.
Behaviour
Bobs head up and down when lands on perch, after rapid flight. Usually alone or in pairs. Occasionally hovers to feed.
Diet
Diet includes fruits and insects. Like other Flowerpeckers, it has a specialized digestive tract to handle mistletoe berries.
Breeding
Nest is pear-shaped with a rounded base and side entrance, made of vegetable matter including grass, suspended low down in a bush. Both parents care for the young.
Vocalisation
Includes rapid, short, high-pitched squeaks.
Movements
Sedentary
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Cheke, R. & Mann, C. (2019). Midget Flowerpecker (Dicaeum aeneum). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/60145 on 27 November 2019).
- Dutson, G. (2011) Birds of Melanesia, Christopher Helm, London.
- Gregory, P. (2017) Birds of New Guinea, Including Bismarck Archipelago and Boughainville. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Midget Flowerpecker. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 16 June 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Midget_Flowerpecker
