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18

Black-headed Honeyeater (Melithreptus affinis) Alternate name(s): "King Island Honeyeater", "Black-capped Honeyeater*", "Black Cap*" Size: 14-15 cm (male), 12-14 cm (female) Weight: 13-17 g

Australia: Family Group 18 Family Group 18 Table Yellow Wattlebird Red Wattlebird Little Wattlebird Western Wattlebird Regent Honeyeater Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater Striped Honeyeater Helmeted Friarbird Silver-crowned Friarbird Noisy Friarbird Little Friarbird Blue-faced Honeyeater Bell Miner Yellow-throated Miner Noisy Miner Macleay's Honeyeater Tawny-breasted Honeyeater Yellow-spotted Honeyeater Lewin's Honeyeater Yellow-faced Honeyeater Graceful Honeyeater Bridled Honeyeater Eungella Honeyeater Singing Honeyeater Mangrove Honeyeater Varied Honeyeater White-lined Honeyeater White-gaped Honeyeater White-eared Honeyeater Yellow Honeyeater Yellow-throated Honeyeater Yellow-tufted Honeyeater Purple-gaped Honeyeater Grey-headed Honeyeater Yellow-plumed Honeyeater Grey-fronted Honeyeater Fuscous Honeyeater Yellow-tinted Honeyeater White-plumed Honeyeater Brown Honeyeater Bar-breasted Honeyeater Brown-backed Honeyeater Rufous-throated Honeyeater Grey Honeyeater Tawny-crowned Honeyeater Rufous-banded Honeyeater New Holland Honeyeater White-cheeked Honeyeater Crescent Honeyeater White-fronted Honeyeater Painted Honeyeater Black-chinned Honeyeater White-throated Honeyeater Strong-billed Honeyeater White-naped Honeyeater Brown-headed Honeyeater Black-headed Honeyeater Eastern Spinebill Western Spinebill Banded Honeyeater Black Honeyeater Pied Honeyeater Scarlet Honeyeater Red-headed Honeyeater Dusky Honeyeater Olive-backed Sunbird Gibberbird Crimson Chat Orange Chat Yellow Chat White-fronted Chat Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names Habitat pages Key plants Birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Black-headed Honeyeaters are very small nectar-eating birds. Except for small creamy-white arches of skin above the eyes, their entire head, plus the neck and shoulders, are black. There is NO white neck band. The rest of the front, from the breast down to the undertail coverts, is light-grey. The back and rump are olive-grey. The wings are dark-grey, the uppertail is also dark-grey, while the undertail is light-grey. The irises are dark. The short, slightly down-curved bill is black, while the legs and feet are the colour of skin. Juveniles have a brownish head. The eye skin is bluish-white and base of the bill is yellowish.

Taxonomy, classification See Black-headed Honeyeater at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Black-headed Honeyeater is available HERE . Black-headed Honeyeaters are endemic to Tasmania and smaller islands along Bass Strait. In Tasmania they are found along the North coast and the eastern half, except a small area to the South of Launceston, but including all the smaller islands along the South-east coast. They only occasionally enter the peaks of the central highlands and basically never stay on the wet western side of the divide. In addition, they also occur on the three small islands near the north-western tip of Tasmania and King Island. They are also found on Flinders Island, but not on either Cape Barren Island or Clarke Island. Black-headed Honeyeaters have a preference for mature forest, in particular for dense growth within these forests.

Sightings Click here for sighting information B. Hensen reports spotting Black-headed Honeyeaters both on Bruny Island, TAS, and in the Peter Murrell Reserve, near Kingston, TAS, in March 2016. M. Eaton found a Black-headed Honeyeater at Mt. Nelson, Hobart, TAS, in April 2021, and at both Peter Murrell Reserve, near Kingston, TAS, and Margate, Kingborough, TAS, in September 2021.

Photos

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal view of a Black-headed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Peter Murrell Reserve, near Kingston, TAS, September 2021]

Frontal view of a Black-headed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Bruny Island, TAS, March 2016]

Near-frontal view of 3 Black-headed Honeyeaters (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Margate, Kingborough, TAS, September 2021]

Lateral view of a Black-headed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Peter Murrell Reserve, near Kingston, TAS, March 2016]

Lateral/ventral view of a Black-headed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Mt. Nelson, Hobart, TAS, April 2021]

Near-dorsal view of a Black-headed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Peter Murrell Reserve, near Kingston, TAS, March 2016]

Near-dorsal view of 3 Black-headed Honeyeaters (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Margate, Kingborough, TAS, September 2021]

Ventral view of a Black-headed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Peter Murrell Reserve, near Kingston, TAS, March 2016]

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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