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Grey-headed Honeyeater
(Ptilotula keartlandi)
: "Keartland's Honeyeater"
Size: 15-16 cm
Weight: 12-18 g
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Similar species |
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Physical description |
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 Click here for a physical description
Grey-headed Honeyeaters are small nectar-eating birds.
They have a yellowish throat which connects to a yellow plume
around the ear coverts. The top of the head is grey, with
darker grey patches around the eyes and on the ear coverts.
At the lower edge of the ear coverts, just above the yellow
plume, there is a thin black plume. The rest of the front is
pale-yellow, turning to greyish yellow towards belly and vent.
The back is greyish-olive, with greyish-brown flight feathers
with olive-green leading edges. The rump is dark-grey; the tail
is grey with some olive-green.
The irises are dark-brown. The slightly down-curved bill is black,
while the legs and feet are grey.
Juveniles
have duller colours.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Grey-headed
Honeyeater at Wikipedia  .
Click here for classification information
The classification of Australian honeyeater species, mainly
in the genus "Lichenostomus", has undergone a major revision,
with many species now moved into several newly defined genera
(Gavicalis, Stomiopera, Ptilotula, Nesoptilotis).
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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Click here for information on habitat
and range
The overall distribution of this species can be assessed based
on sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to
ebird.org
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The global distribution of the Grey-headed Honeyeater is available
HERE
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NB:
Reports on ebird of birds submitted by birdwatchers from
the Australian Outback tend to be clustered along roads
and public areas such as camp grounds; in such cases their
distribution is not a good representation of the overall
distribution of the species.
Grey-headed Honeyeaters are endemic to Australia. They are found
only in the northern half of the continent, with a northern boundary
of their range from the Pilbara coast in WA to the South coast of
the Gulf of Carpentaria in QLD. In the interior, towards the South,
their distribution extends from roughly the Gascoyne River in WA to
the WA/SA/NT tri-state border, South of Alice Springs, NT, and into
far western QLD. Note that this area includes parts of the great
sandy deserts of inland WA.
Grey-headed Honeyeaters are NOT found in the Lake Eyre Basin, South
of Mt. Isa, QLD, but there is a separate population in the
south-western corner of QLD, along the upper Paroo River.
Grey-headed Honeyeaters have a preference for mulga scrub and woodland, but they are
also found regularly in gorges and along rocky hillsides.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
B. Hensen reports spotting a pair of Grey-headed Honeyeaters
at Bowra Wildlife Sanctuary, near Cunnamulla, QLD, in October 2012.
J. Greaves reports spotting Grey-headed Honeyeaters at the Granites
Gold Mine, inland NT, in June 2015.
B. Hensen found a Grey-headed Honeyeater in the township of Alice
Springs, NT, in July 2018.
M. Eaton spotted a Grey-headed Honeyeater ca. 40 km west of Cunnamulla,
QLD, in June 2019.
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Photos |
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ADULT |
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Frontal view of a Grey-headed Honeyeater
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[40 km west of Cunnamulla, QLD, June 2019]
Lateral view of a Grey-headed Honeyeater
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[40 km west of Cunnamulla, QLD, June 2019]
Lateral view of a Grey-headed Honeyeater
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Alice Springs, NT, July 2018]
Lateral/ventral view of a Grey-headed Honeyeater
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[40 km west of Cunnamulla, QLD, June 2019]
Family of Grey-headed Honeyeaters (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[The Granites Gold Mine, inland NT, June 2015]
Pair of Grey-headed Honeyeaters (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Bowra Wildlife Sanctuary, near Cunnamulla, QLD, October 2012]
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.
Breeding
Nest
Eggs
Behaviour
Food
Call/s
