Blue-faced honeyeater

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Blue-faced honeyeater
A medium-sized songbird with a prominent blue eye-patch sits on pebbled concrete.
Subspecies cyanotis, Queensland

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Meliphagidae
Genus: Entomyzon
Swainson, 1825
Species:
E. cyanotis
Binomial name
Entomyzon cyanotis
(Latham, 1801)
map of Australia showing multicolored area across north and east of the country, and New Guinea
Range
subspecies indicated
Synonyms

Melithreptus cyanotis
Gracula cyanotis
Turdus cyanous
Merops cyanops

The blue-faced honeyeater (Entomyzon cyanotis), also colloquially known as the Bananabird, is a

Meliphagidae. It is the only member of its genus, and it is most closely related to honeyeaters of the genus Melithreptus. Three subspecies are recognised. At around 29.5 cm (11.6 in) in length, the blue-faced species is large for a honeyeater. Its plumage is distinctive, with olive upperparts, white underparts, and a black head and throat with white nape and cheeks. Males and females are similar in external appearance. Adults have a blue area of bare skin on each side of the face readily distinguishing them from juveniles, which have yellow or green patches of bare skin.

Blue-faced honeyeater - Canungra - Queensland - Australia

Found in open

incubates two or rarely three eggs
.

Taxonomy and naming

The blue-faced honeyeater was first described by ornithologist

Turdus cyanous).[2][3] It was as the blue-cheeked bee-eater that it was painted between 1788 and 1797 by Thomas Watling, one of a group known collectively as the Port Jackson Painter.[4]

Blue-faced honeyeater (Intermediate) - Fogg Dam - Middle Point - Northern Territory - Australia

It was reclassified in the genus Entomyzon, which was erected by William Swainson in 1825. He observed that the "Blue-faced Grakle" was the only insectivorous member of the genus, and posited that it was a link between the smaller honeyeaters and the riflebirds of the genus Ptiloris.[5] The generic name is derived from the Ancient Greek ento-/εντο- 'inside' and myzein/μυζειν 'to drink' or 'suck'. The specific epithet, cyanotis, means 'blue-eared', and combines cyano-/κυανο 'blue' with otis (a Latinised form of ωτος, the Greek genitive of ous/ους) 'ear'.[6] Swainson spelt it Entomiza in an 1837 publication,[7] and George Gray wrote Entomyza in 1840.[8]

The blue-faced honeyeater is generally held to be the only member of the genus, although its plumage suggests an affinity with honeyeaters of the genus Melithreptus. It has been classified in that genus by Glen Storr,[9][10] although others felt it more closely related to wattlebirds (Anthochaera) or miners (Manorina).[11] A 2004 molecular study has resolved that it is closely related to Melithreptus after all.[12] Molecular clock estimates indicate that the blue-faced honeyeater diverged from the Melithreptus honeyeaters somewhere between 12.8 and 6.4 million years ago, in the Miocene epoch. It differs from them in its much larger size, brighter plumage, more gregarious nature, and larger patch of bare facial skin.[13]

Molecular analysis has shown honeyeaters to be related to the

Maluridae (Australian fairy-wrens) in the large superfamily Meliphagoidea.[14]

"Blue-faced honeyeater" has been designated as the official common name for the species by the

Uw Olkola, where inh- is a qualifier meaning 'meat' or 'animal', in three aboriginal languages of central Cape York Peninsula[21]

Three subspecies are recognised:

  • E. c. albipennis was described by
  • E. c. cyanotis, the nominate form, is found from Cape York Peninsula south through Queensland and New South Wales, into the Riverina region, Victoria, and southeastern South Australia.[17]
  • E. c. griseigularis is found in southwestern
    Eduard van Oort.[25] It is much smaller than the other subspecies. The original name for this subspecies was harteri, but the type specimen, collected in Cooktown, was found to be an intergrade form. The new type was collected from Merauke. This subspecies intergrades with cyanotis at the base of the Cape York Peninsula, and the zone of intermediate forms is narrow.[24] The white wing-patch is larger than that of cyanotis and smaller than that of albipennis.[23] Only one bird (from Cape York) of this subspecies was sampled in a molecular study, and it was shown to be genetically close to cyanotis.[13]

Description

A medium-sized songbird with a khaki eye-patch sits on a fencepost with trees in the background.
Subspecies cyanotis, juvenile, near Eumundi, Queensland

A large honeyeater ranging from 26 to 32 cm (10 to 12.5 in) and averaging 29.5 cm (11.6 in) in length. The adult blue-faced honeyeater has a wingspan of 44 cm (17.5 in) and weighs around 105 g (3.7 oz).

Kingaroy in central Queensland, which was found dead on a road after 8 years and 3.5 months in September 1998, around 2 km (1.2 mi) away.[28]

The blue-faced honeyeater produces a variety of calls, including a piping call around half an hour before dawn, variously described as ki-owt,[29] woik, queet, peet, or weet. Through the day, it makes squeaking noises while flying, and harsh squawks when mobbing. Its calls have been likened to those of the yellow-throated miner (Manorina flavigula), but are deeper. Blue-faced honeyeaters make a soft chirping around nestlings and family members.[30]

A distinctive bird, the blue-faced honeyeater differs in coloration from the duller-plumaged

wattlebirds, and it is much larger than the similarly coloured Melithreptus honeyeaters. Subspecies albipennis, with its white wing-patch, has been likened to a khaki-backed butcherbird in flight.[17]

Distribution and habitat

A medium-sized songbird with a prominent blue eye-patch sits on the ground looking up.
Subspecies albipennis, Katherine, Northern Territory

The blue-faced honeyeater is found from the

South West Slopes and Riverina to the Murray River. It is common in northern Victoria and reaches Bordertown in southeastern South Australia, its range continuing along the Murray. It is also found in the Grampians region, particularly in the vicinity of Stawell, Ararat and St Arnaud, with rare reports from southwestern Victoria. The species occasionally reaches Adelaide, and there is a single record from the Eyre Peninsula.[32] The altitude ranges from sea level to around 850 m (2,790 ft), or rarely 1,000 m (3,300 ft).[31]

In New Guinea, it is found from

The blue-faced honeyeater appears to be generally sedentary within its range, especially in much of the Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales. However, in many places (generally south of the

Jandowae in southeastern Queensland, birds were regularly recorded flying north and east from March to June, and returning south and west in July and August, and were absent from the area in spring and summer.[37]

They live throughout

Triodia, but sometimes it is made up of shrubs or small trees, such as grevilleas, paperbarks, wattles, Cooktown ironwood (Erythrophleum chlorostachys) or billygoat plum (Terminalia ferdinandiana).[31] One study in Kakadu National Park found that blue-faced honeyeaters inhabited mixed stands of eucalypts and Pandanus, but were missing from pure stands of either plant.[38]

Behaviour

The social organisation of the blue-faced honeyeater has been little studied to date. Encountered in pairs, family groups or small flocks, blue-faced honeyeaters sometimes associate with groups of

nankeen night-heron (Nycticorax caledonicus).[39] A study published in 2004 of remnant patches of forest in central Queensland, an area largely cleared for agriculture, showed a reduced avian species diversity in areas frequented by blue-faced honeyeaters or noisy miners. This effect was more marked in smaller patches. The study concluded that conserved patches of woodland containing the two aggressive species should be larger than 20 ha (44 acres) to preserve diversity.[40]

Blue-faced honeyeater at Edinburgh Zoo

Social birds, blue-faced honeyeaters can be noisy when they congregate.[30] When feeding in groups, birds seem to keep in contact with each other by soft chirping calls.[30] In Mackay, a bird would fly up 10 or 12 metres (33 or 39 ft) above the treetops calling excitedly to its flock, which would follow and fly around in what was likened to an aerial corroboree, seemingly at play.[18] A single bird was recorded aping and playing with an immature Australian magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) in Proserpine, Queensland.[30] The blue-faced honeyeater has been reported to be fond of bathing;[41] a flock of 15–20 birds was observed diving into pools one bird at a time, while others were perched in surrounding treetops preening.[42]

The parasite Anoncotaenia globata (a worldwide species not otherwise recorded from Australia) was isolated from a blue-faced honeyeater collected in North Queensland in 1916.[43] The habroneme nematode, Cyrnea (Procyrnea) spirali, has also been isolated from this among other honeyeater species.[44] The nasal mite, Ptilonyssus philemoni, has been isolated from the noisy friarbird (Philemon corniculatus) and blue-faced honeyeater.[45]

Breeding

At Dayboro, Queensland, Australia

The blue-faced honeyeater probably breeds throughout its range.[32] The breeding season is from June to January, with one or two broods raised during this time. The nest is an untidy, deep bowl of sticks and bits of bark in the fork of a tree, Staghorn or bird's nest ferns,[46] or grasstree.[30] Pandanus palms are a popular nest site in Mackay.[18] They often renovate and use the old nests of other species, most commonly the grey-crowned babbler (Pomatostomus temporalis), but also the chestnut-crowned babbler (P. ruficeps), other honeyeaters, including noisy (Philemon corniculatus), little (P. citreogularis) and silver-crowned friarbirds (P. argenticeps), the noisy miner (Manorina melanocephala) and the red wattlebird (Anthochaera carunculata), and artamids, such as the Australian magpie and butcherbird species, and even the magpie-lark.[30] In Coen, an old babbler nest in a paperbark (Melaleuca), which had been lined with messmate bark, had been occupied by blue-faced honeyeaters and re-lined with strips of paperbark.[47] Two or, rarely, three eggs are laid, 22 × 32 mm (1 × 1⅓ in) and buff-pink splotched with red-brown or purplish colours.[46] The female alone incubates the eggs over a period of 16 or 17 days.[48]

Like those of all passerines, the chicks are

altricial; they are born blind and covered only by sparse tufts of brown down on their backs, shoulders and parts of the wings. By four days they open their eyes, and pin feathers emerge from their wings on day six, and the rest of the body on days seven and eight.[48] Both parents feed the young, and are sometimes assisted by helper birds.[30] The Pacific koel (Eudynamys orientalis) and pallid cuckoo (Cuculus pallidus) have been recorded as brood parasites of the blue-faced honeyeater, and the laughing kookaburra recorded as preying on broods.[49]

Feeding

The blue-faced honeyeater generally forages in the branches and foliage of trees, in small groups of up to seven birds. Occasionally, larger flocks of up to 30 individuals have been reported,

chafers (subfamily Melolonthinae), click beetles (genus Demetrida), darkling beetles (genera Chalcopteroides and Homotrysis), leaf beetles (genus Paropsis), ladybirds of the genus Scymnus, weevils such as the pinhole borer (Platypus australis), and members of the genera Mandalotus, Polyphrades and Prypnus, as well as flies, moths, bees, ants, and spiders.[50] Blue-faced honeyeaters have been reported preying on small lizards.[51] Prey are caught mostly by sallying, although birds also probe and glean.[51] In Kakadu National Park, birds prefer to hunt prey between the leaf bases of the screw palm (Pandanus spiralis).[38]

A medium-sized songbird with a prominent blue eye-patch stands on the ground with some sort of grub in its beak.
Subspecies cyanotis feeding, southeastern Australia

The remainder of their diet is made up of plant material, such as pollen, berries, and nectar, from such species as grasstrees (Xanthorrhoea) and scarlet gum (Eucalyptus phoenicea), and from cultivated crops, such as bananas or particularly grapes.[50] In general, birds prefer feeding at cup-shaped sources, such as flowers of the Darwin woollybutt (Eucalyptus miniata), Darwin stringybark (E. tetrodonta) and long-fruited bloodwood (Corymbia polycarpa), followed by brush-shaped inflorescences, such as banksias or melaleucas, gullet-shaped inflorescences such as grevilleas, with others less often selected.[51]

Usually very inquisitive and friendly birds, they will often invade a campsite, searching for edible items, including fruit, insects, and remnants from containers of jam or honey, and milk is particularly favoured.[19] Parent birds feed the young on insects, fruit and nectar, and have been recorded regurgitating milk to them as well.[19]

Aviculture

Keeping blue-faced honeyeaters in an aviary in New South Wales requires a Class 2 Licence. Applicants must show they have appropriate housing, and at least two years' experience of keeping birds.[52] Blue-faced honeyeaters are exhibited at Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago,[53] Philadelphia Zoo,[54] Columbus Zoo and Aquarium (Ohio), Birmingham Zoo (Alabama), and Tracy Aviary (Utah),[55] Woodland Park Zoo (Seattle)[56] Children's Zoo at Celebration Square (Michigan) in the United States,[57] Marwell Zoo in England, Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland and Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia.[58]

References

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  2. ^ Latham, John (1801). Supplementum Indicis Ornithologici, sive Systematis Ornithologiae (in Latin). London: G. Leigh, J. & S. Sotheby. pp. 29, 34, 42.
  3. ^ a b Sharpe, Richard Bowdler (1904). The history of the collections contained in the natural history departments of the British Museum. London: British Museum. p. 126.
  4. ^ The Natural History Museum, London (2007). "Blue-cheeked Bee Eater", native name "Der-ro-gang". First Fleet Artwork Collection. The Natural History Museum, London. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  5. ^ Swainson, William (1825). "Art. LX. On The Characters and Natural Affinities of several New Birds from Australasia, including some Observations of the Columbidae". Zoological Journal. 1: 463–484.
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  7. ^ Swainson, William (1837). "On the Natural History and Classification of Birds". In Lardner, D. (ed.). The Cabinet Cyclopaedia. Vol. 2. London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green & Longman and John Taylor. p. 328.
  8. ^ Gray, George Robert (1840). A List of the Genera of Birds, with an indication of the typical species of each genus. London: R. & J.E. Taylor. p. 21.
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  15. ^ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2021). "Honeyeaters". World Bird List Version 11.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
  16. ^ Shaw, George; Stephens, James Francis (1826). General zoology: or Systematic natural history, Volume 14, Part 1. G. Kearsley. p. 260.
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  21. ^ Hamilton, Philip (1997). "blue-faced honeyeater, Entomyzon cyanotis". Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. Archived from the original on 20 October 2009. Retrieved 19 August 2010.
  22. ^ Gould, John (1841). "Entomyza albipennis". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London (8): 169. Issue is inscribed 1840 but published in 1841.
  23. ^ a b Higgins, p. 608.
  24. ^ a b c d Higgins, p. 607.
  25. Van Oort
    ; Eduard D. (1909). "Birds from south western and southern New Guinea". Nova Guinea: Résultats de l'Expédition Scientifique Néerlandaise a la Nouvelle-Guinée. 9: 51–107 [97].
  26. ^ a b Higgins, p. 606.
  27. ^ a b Higgins, p. 601.
  28. ^ "ABBBS Database Search: Entomyzon cyanotis (Blue-faced Honeyeater)". Australian Bird & Bat Banding Scheme (ABBBS). Canberra, Australia: Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia. 13 April 2007.
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  48. ^ a b Atchison, N. (1992). "Breeding blue-faced honeyeaters at Taronga Zoo". Australian Aviculture. 46: 29–35.
  49. ^ Higgins, p. 605.
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  51. ^ a b c Higgins, p. 602.
  52. ^ Wildlife Licensing Section; Biodiversity Management Unit (October 2003). "New South Wales Bird Keeping Licence: Species Lists (October 2003)" (PDF). National Parks and Wildlife Service, New South Wales Government. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2011.
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  54. ^ "McNeil Avian Center". Philadelphia Zoo website. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Philadelphia Zoo. 2010.
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  56. ^ "Animals at Woodland Park Zoo - Woodland Park Zoo Seattle WA". www.zoo.org. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
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Cited text

  • Higgins, Peter J.; Peter, Jeffrey M.; Steele, W. K., eds. (2001). Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds. Volume 5: Tyrant-flycatchers to Chats. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. .

External links