Brown-headed Honeyeater Melithreptus brevirostris Scientific name definitions

11·5–14 cm; male 12–16 g and two females 14·1 and 17 g (nominate), male 11–14·2 g and female 12–16 g (pallidi­ceps), male 11–14·5 g and female 11–15 g (leuco­genys), male 17–19·3 g and female 15·7–20·5 g (magnirostris), male 17·5–20 g and female 16·5–18 g (wombeyi). Nominate race has dull brown cap covering top and side of head and hindneck, bare creamy-yellow skin around eye (broadest above and behind eye), and buff crescent-shaped band across nape (normally not reaching bare skin around eye); off-white chin and throat; upperbody dull olive-green, brighter on rump and uppertail-coverts; uppertail brown with narrow olive-green edges; upperwing brown, diffuse buff edges on coverts, fine brownish-grey to off-white edges on remiges; underbody buff-white with pale rufous wash, strongest on flanks and undertail-coverts; undertail brown; underwing brown, off-white patch across bases of remiges; iris reddish-brown; bill black, gape grey; legs light brown to brownish-grey, more orange on feet, especially soles. Sexes alike in plumage, male slightly larger than female. Juvenile is patterned like adult, but with pale crescent on nape inconspicuous, mostly brown upperparts, light olive outer edges of tertials and secondaries (visible on folded wing), bill orange-yellow with dark brown tip and culmen, gape conspicuous and orange, bare skin around eye turquoise. Races differ in size, in darkness of plumage and in extent of grey-brown scalloping on crown: pallidiceps is significantly smaller than nominate, paler overall, with cap strongly scaled brownish-grey (can appear uniformly brownish-grey when very fresh); leucogenys also is smaller and paler than nominate, with cap paler and more uniform (but darker and less scaly than previous), and with distinct orange tinge in bare skin around eye; magnirostris is larger than nominate, with noticeably longer bill, darker cap, more diffuse white nuchal band, slightly darker underbody; wombeyi is larger and darker than others, with almost black-brown cap, diffuse napeband (much as previous), darker olive upperparts, darker below, with throat, breast and anterior flanks brownish-grey, grading to buff on belly and to brownish-grey with buff wash on undertail-coverts.

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Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Mostly dry, open Eucalyptus forests and woodlands, often with well-developed shrubby understorey of Callitris, Casuarina, Melaleuca, Banksia or Acacia. Also other Eucalyptus forests, including wet sclerophyll forests in gulleys, riparian or littoral forests or woodlands, and mallee eucalypt woodland or shrubland. Less often in open forests or woodlands dominated by other trees such as Acacia, casuarina or Callitris, sometimes mixed with eucalypts, including low coastal Banksia-Eucalyptus woodland, mallee shrubland dominated by broombush (Melaleuca uncinata) or of mallee eucalypts mixed with other shrubs such as sugarwood (Myoporum platycarpum), belah (Casuarina cristata), Senna, Dodonaea or Eremophila; or occasionally in open heathland of Banksia, Leptospermum, Melaleuca, Casuarina or Dryandra. In temperate, subtropical and semi-arid zones, from coasts to tree-line in subalpine areas.

Generally resident, with local movements within large home ranges in response to availability of food. Described as migratory or nomadic in some areas, although such claims may be referring to local movements, e.g. near Canberra groups wander over area of 5–8 km², and near Kellerberrin (Western Australia) groups ranged up to 3·1 km along well-vegetated road verges. Other seasonal patterns may result from movements between habitats, e.g. around Sydney (New South Wales) moves from forest to spend autumn and winter in coastal heathland. In some areas where present throughout year, recorded more often in autumn or winter than at other times, possibly because birds form mobile and conspicuous flocks outside breeding season; in other areas occur throughout year but irregularly, with no seasonal trends. Possibly migratory in some parts, especially in SE New South Wales, being recorded apparently on passage, sometimes with known migratory species such as M. lunatus.

Arthropods (especially insects, also spiders), nectar and manna, lerp and honey­dew; known also to prey on eggs of other small birds. In South Australia, 65% of food eaten was insects and 35% nectar. In Victoria, ate manna, honeydew and lerp for most of year and nectar from mistletoe (e.g. of genus Amyema) and other plants during spring (when little manna or lerp available), e.g. of 142 foraging observations at one site, 52% of feeding on manna from manna gum (Eucalyptus viminalis), 18% on honeydew from psyllids, 23% on nectar, and 7% on insects collected from foliage or aerially. Forages mainly in canopy of trees (especially mature Eucalyptus), including sometimes in mistletoes (e.g. of genus Amyema), less often in shrubs (e.g. Acacia, Adenanthos, Correa, Draandra, Grevillea) and saplings in middle storey and understorey. Searches mainly on bark of branches, among foliage and twigs, and outermost flowers. Insects taken by gleaning, occasionally by sallying in air. Probes flowers for nectar, rotating bill rapidly around base of style; sometimes hangs upside-down to probe pendulous flowers; sometimes steals nectar by piercing bases of tubular flowers. Lerp, manna and honeydew taken by gleaning and probing. Proportions of time or feeding observations directed at different food types, and of substrates and foraging method used (which correlated with food type), vary among studies; of 146 observations of foraging in N New South Wales, 89·7% in foliage, 8·2% among flowers, 1·4% on branches, and 0·7% on trunks (and not seen to forage on ground or aerially), whereas, of 375 observations of foraging in Mt Lofty Ranges (South Australia), 20% in foliage, 25% on twigs and 55% on branches (and not recorded as feeding on trunks of trees or in saplings). Height of foraging can also vary seasonally, e.g. in wet mountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans) forests in Victoria, foraged mainly in canopy during summer, taking nectar only in peak flowering season, and mainly in understorey in winter, when nectar of Correa lawrenceana available. Active and vocal. Mostly in small flocks of 5–15 individuals, but up to 20 sometimes gather in flowering eucalypts.

Noisy, calling often. Main call a repeated sharp, unmusical and moderately high-pitched “chip”, “click”,“chick” or “ktt”, as contact call during feeding or from flocks in flight; also an animated staccato “chip-chip-chip…”, starting with separate notes, accelerating, then decelerating and ending with separate “chip” notes; flat hard trill in alarm. Other calls include trilling, rattling, twittering, grating, rasping and chuckling sounds.

Season mainly late winter to mid-summer, but breeding recorded in all months except May, most records of breeding and nearly all those of eggs late Aug to mid-Jan; usually double-brooded. Regularly breeds co-operatively, but often solitarily. Both sexes collect nesting material, but possibly only female builds; nest a small, neat and deep cup, usually of strips of stringybark or grass, woven with hair, fur, wool, spider web and egg sacs, often lined with hair, fur, wool, feathers including down, or plant down, external diameter 5·7–7·6 cm, depth 4·4–7·6 cm, internal diameter 4·4–5·1cm, depth 3·8–5·1 cm; usually suspended in outer foliage in top of tree, especially eucalypt, or tall shrub, sometimes in sapling, 0·7–24 m (mean 6·6 m) above ground. Clutch usually 3 eggs, sometimes 2; incubation by both sexes and, at least sometimes, auxiliaries, no information on duration; chicks fed by both parents and by any auxiliaries present, nestling period once more than 11 days and once 15 or more days. Nests parasitized by Pallid (Heteroscenes pallidus) and Fan-tailed Cuckoos (Cacomantis flabelliformis), by Shining Bronze-cuckoo (Chalcites lucidus) and probably by Horsfield’s Bronze-cuckoo (Chalcites basalis). From 11 eggs in six nests, overall success 0·17 young fledged per nest; of 29 nests for which outcome known, 20 (69%) fledged at least one young.

Not globally threatened. Widespread and locally common; rare in extreme SW Western Australia (including on Swan R Plain). No estimates of total population; recorded densities of up to 3·76 birds/ha.