Yellow-throated Miner Manorina flavigula Scientific name definitions

22–28 cm; 55 g. Nominate race has olive-yellow forehead merging into grey on crown, hindneck and side of neck, with fine whitish scaling on hindneck and side of neck and yellow suffusion on side of neck; black mask bordered below by yellow gape stripe, small patch of bare yellow skin at rear of eye (extending narrowly over and below rear half of eye), small cream spot on rear ear-coverts behind mask; prominent white sub­moustachial stripe, long, narrow ornage-yellow bare malar stripe; most of upperbody grey with varying diffuse darker brownish-grey mottling and indistinct fine white scaling, merging over rump to prominently off-white to greyish-white uppertail-coverts (prominent in flight); tail dark grey, broadly tipped white, rectrices narrowly edged olive-yellow; secondary upperwing-coverts and tertials grey, contrasting with black-brown rest of wing, with fine olive-yellow edges on greater coverts, olive-yellow edges on most remiges (panel on folded wing), and fine white tips on outer primaries; upper chin yellow (visible only with good view), throat and breast off-white to greyish-white, breast with dark grey and white scalloping, diffuse yellow suffusion across upper breast (continuous with that on side of neck); rest of underbody off-white, very pale greyish wash on belly, flanks and thighs; undertail dark grey with white to off-white tip; underwing dark grey, diffuse off-white patch across bases of primaries; iris brown to dark brown; bill yellow to orange, gape slightly paler; legs orange to brownish-orange. Sexes alike in plumage, male larger than female. Juvenile is very like adult, in good view separable by pale pinkish-brown suffusion on crown, neck and upperbody, no white scaling on neck, pinkish-brown wash on tail tip, brown wash across breast (only indistinct scalloping), narrow, indistinct and broken pale pinkish-brown wingbars across tips of median and greater coverts, clearer whitish fringes around tips of outer primaries, and slightly duller yellow bill. Races differ in size, plumage and bare parts: wayensis is very similar to nominate but slightly smaller, slightly paler above, with only faint scalloping, paler grey wing-coverts and brown remiges, and paler greyish breast, plumage varies subtly over range, paler inland; lutea is larger than nominate, very similar in appearance to previous, but with slightly larger and pale yellow postauricular spot, more extensive yellow suffusion on side of neck and breast, yellow-olive upper lores, paler grey anterior ear-coverts, more prominent bare malar stripe; melvillensis is darker and more heavily patterned than preceding races, distinguished from nominate by slightly larger pale yellow postauricular spot (much as in lutea), more extensive yellow on side of neck and breast, brownish-grey upperparts more heavily mottled dark brown and diffusely scalloped with light grey, merging across rump into light brownish-grey uppertail-coverts (finely scaled off-white) contrasting much less with rest of upperside, and tip of tail usually washed light brown; obscura is darkest, differs from wayensis in darker grey upperparts and breast, little or no contrast between rump and rest of upperbody, heavier scalloping on breast, narrower pale tail tip, more extensive grey wash below usually covering upper belly (and sometimes more of underbody), darker head pattern with less extensive olive-yellow on forehead, narrower mask with only trace of cream postauricular spot (sometimes absent), shorter and paler moustachial stripe, much darker submoustachial, much darker and uniformly grey throat, no whitish scaling on neck, and smaller and darker olive-yellow patch on side of neck (sometimes absent).

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• Yellow-throated x Black-eared Miner (hybrid) Manorina flavigula x melanotis

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.

Nearly all wooded habitats, particularly Acacia woodlands and shrublands and open eucalypt woodlands and forests. Commonly in low Acacia habitats, e.g. those dominated by mulga or myall (Acacia papyrocarpa), usually with understorey of shrubs (e.g. Eremophila, Cassia, Grevillea or chenopods) and ground cover of grasses; and dry open eucalypt woodland, typically with understorey of low shrubs and ground cover of grasses including spinifex (Triodia), and riparian woodlands of river red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) or coolibah (Eucalyptus coolabah); also open eucalypt forests with understorey of tall to low shrubs, including Banksia, paperbarks (Melaleuca), tea-trees (Leptospermum)and casuarinas. Commonly in open tropical sclerophyll woodlands and forests, especially of Darwin woollybutt (Eucalyptus miniata) and Darwin stringybark (Eucalyptus tetrodonta), with middle storey of smaller trees including Erythrophleum, Terminalia, fern-leaved grevillea (Grevillea pteridifolia), paperbarks and Acacia, and dense grass layer; and mixed swamp-woodlands of long-fruited bloodwood (Corymbia polycarpa), fern-leaved grevillea, yellow-barked paperbark (Melaleuca nervosa) and swamp box (Lophostemon lactifluus), or mixed open forests of Bauhinia, Erythrophleum, Atalaya and eucalypts with tall grass layer; riverine forest of weeping paperbark (Melaleuca leucadendra), typically with screw-palms (Pandanus) and Acacia in understorey. Although rarely in dense mature mallee, found commonly in open regenerating mallee or at edges of mallee and open areas, such as roads and farmland. Often in farmland with scattered trees or remnant patches of native vegetation; sometimes in parks, gardens, orchards and vineyards in towns and homesteads. Also, open woodlands dominated by casuarinas, e.g. belah (Casuarina cristata) or buloke (Allocasuarina luehmannii), or cypress-pines (Callitris); and chenopod shrublands on plains and lakebeds, and other semi-arid and arid shrublands or thickets. Occasionally in coastal thickets or shrublands dominated by Banksia, Melaleuca or Lambertia, and in or at edges of monsoon rainforests in tropics.

Resident. Said to be less sedentary than other miners, with some movements or changes in abundance or occurrence noted. Most changes in numbers probably result of local movements, and may in part reflect dispersal to breed and some post-breeding flocking, e.g. in Victoria discrete colonies sometimes coalesce into larger groups in autumn-winter. Some movements attributed to changes in food availability. Casual visitor at some sites at periphery of range, e.g. records in Broome area (Western Australia) in most months but not every year, and minor influx Jul–Oct 1990. Vagrants occasionally hundreds of kilometres from nearest known populations.

Primarily invertebrates, nectar (frequently of Eucalyptus), occasionally fruit, e.g. of mistletoe (Loranthaceae), Rhagodia and Copparis; invertebrates mainly insects, also spiders (Araneae) and pseudoscorpions (Pseudoscorpiones). In South Australia, estimated ratio of insects to nectar in diet 70:30. Forages at all levels, from canopy to ground, occasionally in air. Searches in inner and outer foliage, at flowers, on bark, on herbs, and among stones, leaf litter and dried animal droppings on ground. In Northern Territory, 54% of 119 foraging observations were at flowers, 24% in foliage, 15% on bark, and 7% in air. Nectar taken directly by probing flowers; invertebrates gleaned from vegetation or from ground, or taken by probing into crevices in bark, and under loose bark or debris; occasionally sally-strikes insects in air, and observed also to glean dead insects from cars. On ground, turns over material by probing with bill and lifting head and opening bill wide. Gregarious, noisy and active. Usually in small groups of 5–10 individuals, and adjoining groups sometimes coalesce to form larger flocks of up to 50, exceptionally 100 birds (possibly more often in non-breeding periods); less often in twos (probably pairs), and rarely singly; in the past a flock of more than 1000 individuals noted. Aggressive towards other birds (but said to be less so than M. melanocephala), but sometimes associates with other honeyeaters, e.g. seen to feed with M. melanocephala on fruits of Rhagodia, and fed on ground with Ptilotula penicillata. In NE Australia recorded in mixed-species feeding flocks with up to ten other meliphagid species.

Noisy, but repertoire unstudied. Calls include monosyllabic screams, squeaks and squawks in alarm (apparently identical to those of M. melanocephala); rather slow, miaowing “mew-mew-mew”; low guttural “aarh”; melodious chuckle. Tuneful dawn song, heard most often in breeding season, a chorus of whistled notes from members of group. One possibly mimicked a butcherbird (Cracticus) call.

Over entire range recorded in all months, with apparent peak late winter to summer, and concentrated in spring and early summer, most clutches (87%) Aug–Oct; often more than one brood in a season. Nests in loose colonies and breeds co-operatively; suggested that not an obligate co-operative breeder, but breeding attempts by pairs without auxiliaries normally fail. Nest a large deep cup, occasionally a bowl, usually of grass, sticks and wool, often bound with spider web or hair, lined with wool (less frequent materials used in cup include plant stems and rootlets, hair, feathers, flowers, cocoons, bark, leaves, string, cotton thread, fishing line and paper; in lining, grass, rootlets, plant down, flowers, fur and hair, feathers, silky fibre from seed pods, string, cotton, leaves, once lids of trapdoor-spider burrows); external diameter 17·8–20·3 cm, depth 9·5–10·2cm, internal diameter 7·6–9·5 cm, depth 4·1–7 cm; placed 1·2–16 m (mean 4·4 m) above ground, usually in vertical fork amid dense foliage or branchlets of shrub, sapling or small tree, sometimes in coppice growth from middle to upper trunk level of eucalypt, in mistletoe, or close to trunk of tree, sometimes suspended from horizontal limb, once on three upright stalks. Clutch 2–4 eggs, rarely 5 (mean 3·16); incubation by breeding female, very occasionally assisted by breeding male, period c. 15–16 days; chicks fed by three or more birds, probably parents and auxiliaries, nestling period at least 15–16 days, once young appeared to leave nest prematurely at c. 13 days; fledglings fed by at least three individuals. Nests parasitized by Eastern Koel (Eudynamys orientalis) and Pallid Cuckoo (Heteroscenes pallidus). From 148 eggs in 55 nests at which outcome known, 1·05 young fledged per nest; of 144 nests, 102 (71%) fledged at least one young; nests late in season in semi-arid areas often fail owing to high ambient temperatures.

Not globally threatened. Common but somewhat patchily distributed, e.g. largely absent from Simpson Desert regions (in C Australia) and from Great Sandy Desert (in N Western Australia). Recorded densities of 0·01–1·4 birds/ha. Range has expanded and populations increased in many regions, chiefly in response to clearance for agriculture (e.g. in Murray-Mallee of inland SE Australia, and in S Western Australia); numbers on Swan Coastal Plain (Western Australia), however, have declined since European settlement. Range expansion in inland SE Australia has resulted in widespread hybridization with M. melanotis, to extent that latter species now Endangered. Present species appears to be having similar impact to that of M. melanocephala in semi-arid and arid zones, dominating roadside strips or other patches of remnant vegetation and excluding most other small insectivorous birds that would use these corridors or patches. Formerly shot as a pest in orchards and vineyards.