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18

White-plumed Honeyeater (Ptilotula penicillata) Alternate name(s): "Greenie", "Linner", "Chickoowee", "Ringeye", "Ringneck", "Australian Canary*" Aboriginal name(s): "chickowee" Size: 15-17 cm Weight: 15-24 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 White-plumed Honeyeaters are small nectar-eating birds. Their front is grey, the back is olive-grey. The flight feathers have wide olive-green leading edges, which make the folded wings look all olive-green. The uppertail is olive-grey, the undertail is grey. An area around the eyes and the ear coverts are olive, with a very thin black and a broader white plume. The irises are dark. The bill is black, while the legs and feet are grey. Juveniles have a less conspicuous black plume (if any) and a yellowish bill. The colours are duller than those of adults.

Taxonomy, classification See White-plumed 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).

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 White-plumed Honeyeater is available HERE . 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. White-plumed Honeyeaters are endemic to Australia. There are four races of White-plumed Honeyeaters - for details see a field guide. Together, their range extends over large parts of the Australian continent, including the semi-arid interior, with the following exceptions: White-plumed Honeyeaters are NOT found in the far North of the continent (Kimberley, Top End of the NT, Cape York peninsula), and not along the coast and Great Dividing Range of QLD either. There are no White-plumed Honeyeaters in the southern third of WA and a wide coastal fringe in SA (from Eyre peninsula towards WA), and the Gibson Desert either. Neither are they found at Lake Eyre or the area just to the North of it. Of that total range, nominate race "penicillata", occupies the area from south-eastern SA, throughout VIC and NSW, into southern central QLD. Race "carteri" is found in central WA and in the border region with SA and the NT. Race "leilavalensis" is found in SA, the eastern part of the NT and far-western QLD. Race "calconi" occupies an East-West-aligned band South of the Kimberley, from about Eighty Mile Beach, WA, to the border region with the central NT. White-plumed Honeyeaters can be found in open woodland, often in eucalypts. They have a preference for River Red Gums along watercourses. They adapt quite well to the presence of humans and are also found in urban parks and in farmland with scattered trees. Where to look? How to find this species? While feeding in eucalypts, honeyeaters often stay high up in the crowns of trees and are therefore hard to spot. But many species, including White-plumed Honeyeaters, will also visit lower plants to feed on nectar in gardens, such as e.g. Eremophila, Banksia, Grevillea or Callistemon. There they are much easier to spot.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "penicillata" White-plumed Honeyeaters, race "penicillata", were visible and audible around the place where we lived in 2003-2006, 20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, on the edge of the Pilliga scrub, basically every day, except the coldest season. They were one of the most common birds there, came in whole families and sometimes made quite a racket, and also seen by us in other parts of the Pilliga scrub. In contrast, they were hardly ever seen in more open country at Eulah Creek, 20 km East of Narrabri, farther away from a large area of contiguous bushland, in 2007-2011. Since 2012 White-plumed Honeyeaters regularly come to visit the flowers of eucalypt trees and our water bowls, but always in small numbers. At the two places where we live(d), we have noted a distinct anti-coincidence of White-plumed Honeyeaters and Singing Honeyeaters. Race "penicillata" was also seen by us on a trip to South Australia, specifically at Hawker, SA, in March 2008. D. Wilson reports spotting White-plumed Honeyeaters, race "penicillata", just to the South of Adelaide, SA, in November 2014. Race "leilavalensis" D. Wilczynska reports spotting White-plumed Honeyeaters, race "leilavalensis", at Yulara, NT, in March 2015. M. Eaton found White-plumed Honeyeaters, race "leilavalensis", at Mount Isa, QLD, in June and July 2021. Race "calconi" J. Greaves reports spotting White-plumed Honeyeaters, race "calconi", at the Granites Gold Mine, inland NT, in June 2015. Race "carteri" J. Greaves reports spotting White-plumed Honeyeaters, race "carteri", at Boolardy Station, Murchison, WA, in August 2016. J. Greaves reports finding White-plumed Honeyeaters, race "carteri", on the banks of the Murchison River, near Ajana, WA, in May 2018.

Photos

Race "penicillata"

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ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal view of a White-plumed Honeyeater; note the clearly visible passerine foothold
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, May 2012]

Frontal view of a White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Durikai SF, near Warwick, QLD, March 2018]

Near-frontal view of a White-plumed Honeyeater; note the clearly visible passerine foothold
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, May 2012]

Close-up portrait of a White-plumed Honeyeater
[Near Narrabri, NSW, June 2012]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater
[Near Narrabri, NSW, June 2012]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater, different posture
[Eulah Creek, NSW, January 2011]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater showing its wirebrush tongue (no disrespect intended...)
[Eulah Creek, NSW, March 2023]

Near-dorsal view of a White-plumed Honeyeater approaching a waterhole (photo taken by R. Druce)
[Pilliga scrub, NSW, July 2011]

Frontal and dorsal view of White-plumed Honeyeaters (photo courtesy of R. Druce)
[Pilliga scrub, NSW, July 2011]

White-plumed Honeyeater checking the surroundings while drinking from a waterhole
[Pilliga scrub, NSW, December 2011]

Here the same White-plumed Honeyeater seen drinking
[Pilliga scrub, NSW, December 2011]

White-plumed Honeyeater scooping up water
[Pilliga scrub, NSW, December 2011]

White-plumed Honeyeater with an itch...
[Manilla, NSW, May 2013]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Frontal view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater; note the absence of a black plume and the last remnant of an orange gape
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2016]

Frontal view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater; note the absence of a black plume, the pale colours and the orange-yellow bill
[Pilliga scrub, NSW, December 2011]

Frontal view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater; different posture
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, November 2012]

Near-frontal view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, February 2016]

Near-lateral view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater
[January 2011]

Immature White-plumed Honeyeater, slightly different posture
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, March 2008]

Lateral view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater with its tongue sticking out
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2016]

This immature White-plumed Honeyeater is studying the photographer
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, November 2012]

Lateral view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, March 2008]

Dorsal view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, February 2016]

Dorsal view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater seen preening
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, February 2016]

Immature White-plumed Honeyeater having a drink
[O'Brien's Creek, Narrabri Lake, NSW, January 2011]

This immature White-plumed Honeyeater and its mates were fascinated by a piece of netting
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, April 2012]

Juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater being fed by its parents
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, November 2012]

Juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater begging for food
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, March 2009]

Fledgling birds, like these two White-plumed Honeyeaters, will often groom one another while waiting to be fed by their parents
[Near Narrabri, NSW, January 2017]

Ventral view of a fledgling White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Bowra Station, near Cunnamulla, QLD, September 2017]

Race "carteri"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal view of a White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[Boolardy Station, Murchison, WA, August 2016]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[Murchison River, near Ajana, WA, May 2018]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[Boolardy Station, Murchison, WA, August 2016]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater foraging in a casuarina tree (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[Boolardy Station, Murchison, WA, January 2014]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Frontal view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater in a casuarina tree (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[Boolardy Station, Murchison, WA, January 2014]

Race "leilavalensis"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Near-lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Mount Isa, QLD, June 2021]

Near-lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater feeding in an eucalypt tree (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Yulara, NT, March 2015]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Mount Isa, QLD, June 2021]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Mount Isa, QLD, July 2021]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Yulara, NT, March 2015]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater feeding in an eucalypt tree (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Yulara, NT, March 2015]

Lateral view of an upside-down White-plumed Honeyeater feeding in an eucalypt tree (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Yulara, NT, March 2015]

Race "calconi"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Near-frontal view of a White-plumed Honeyeater seen from underneath; note the characteristic light-yellow head and otherwise pale plumage (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[The Granites Gold Mine, inland NT, June 2015]

Near-lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater seen from underneath; note the characteristic light-yellow head and otherwise pale plumage (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[The Granites Gold Mine, inland NT, June 2015]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Jun - Jan

Eggs: 2 - 3

Incubation period: 14 days

Fledging age: ca. 15 days

Given the right conditions, White-plumed Honeyeaters can breed any time of the year.

Nest

"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal]

Type: Suspended basket

Material: Root fibres, grass stems, webs

Height above ground: 1 - 10 m

White-plumed Honeyeater chicks in their nest, waiting to be fed
[Near Coonabarabran, NSW, November 2010]

Here a White-plumed Honeyeater's nest in a more open spot
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, 2005]

This White-plumed Honeyeater nest was being built in a drooping branch of a eucalypt tree, less than 2 m above a dirt track
[Near Coonabarabran, NSW, October 2015]

White-plumed Honeyeater carrying rootlets for its nest
[Eulah Creek, NSW, September 2012]

Eggs

"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay]

Size: 20 x 15 mm

Colour: Creamy, with light-brown speckles

Shape: Tapered oval

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Dispersive/sedentary

Elementary unit: Solitary/pair

White-plumed Honeyeaters are one of the species that like a good splash every day; however, they do not only use shallow bowls or puddles for taking their bath - instead they fly from perches onto the surface of standing water fluttering their wings, just touching the surfaces and getting half-emersed before taking off back to the perch again (see photo below).

Action shot of a White-plumed Honeyeater flying in for a bath
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, April 2006]

White-plumed Honeyeater making a splash; it is normal for birds of this species to fully immerse themselves before flying back to their perches soaking wet; they will repeat this up to about 10 times
[O'Brien's Creek, Narrabri Lake, NSW, April 2013]

Soaking wet White-plumed Honeyeater preening after a bath
[Eulah Creek, NSW, June 2016]

Three White-plumed Honeyeaters settling a dispute high up in the sky
[Near Narrabri, NSW, October 2014]

Food, Diet

Adults: Nectar, insects

Dependents: Insects

Water intake: Daily

Like many other honeyeaters, White-plumed Honeyeaters do not exclusively feed on nectar, but take insects too.

Dorsal view of a juvenile White-plumed Honeyeater feeding head-down on nectar
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, December 2005]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater with its prey, a relatively large flying insect
[Eulah Creek, NSW, March 2023]

White-plumed Honeyeater with an insect it has just caught
[Mt. Kaputar NP, NSW, April 2013]

This White-plumed Honeyeater is taking psyllids and lerps
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2011]

Additional information

There is a separate page with a short description of psyllids and lerps.

This White-plumed Honeyeater is taking a psyllid with lerp
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2013]

Here the same White-plumed Honeyeater as shown above is seen taking a psyllid without lerp
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2013]

White-plumed Honeyeater having a drink from a muddy waterhole (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Timmallallie NP, NSW, November 2018]

Lateral view of a White-plumed Honeyeater visiting a bird bath
[Eulah Creek, NSW, March 2023]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

wplume_20200516.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Contact call(?)	© MD
wplume_20170802_2.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Contact calls(?)	© MD
wplume_20190618.m4a	penicillata (SW QLD)	Territorial song (male display flight)	© MD
wplume_20171209.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Territorial call (break of dawn)	© MD
wplume_20200718_2.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Territorial calls (break of dawn)	© MD
wplume_20211016.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Territorial calls (break of dawn)	© MD
wplume_20200718.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Territorial calls (break of dawn)	© MD
wplume_20180419.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Warning/alarm calls	© MD
wplume_20200531.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Alarm calls (Peregrine Falcon)	© MD
wplume_20190321.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Alarm calls (Grey Butcherbird)	© MD
wplume_20200718_4.m4a	penicillata (W NSW)	Alarm calls (Laughing Kookaburra)	© MD
wplume_20210320.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Aerial predator alarm calls	© MD
wplume_20200609.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Alarm calls	© MD
wplume_20210121.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Feeding calls	© MD
wplume_20191027.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Feeding calls	© MD
wplume_20180105.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	(Food competition)	© MD
wplume_20200718_3.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	Various (break of dawn)	© MD
wplume_20221226.mp3	penicillata (NW NSW)	? + alarm calls	© MD
wplume_20221226_2.mp3	penicillata (NW NSW)	?	© MD
wplume_20220206.m4a	penicillata (NW NSW)	?	© MD
wplume_jg_20160806.m4a	carteri (Ctl WA)	Contact call	© JG
wplume_jg_20160806_2.m4a	carteri (Ctl WA)	Contact call Q&A	© JG
wplume_jg_20160803.m4a	carteri (Ctl WA)	Upset/fighting	© JG
wplume_jg_20160806_3.m4a	carteri (Ctl WA)	Feeding/begging calls	© JG

We have also recorded the wing beat of a (wet) White-plumed Honeyeater, flying back to its perch after dipping into water.

wplume_20140206.mp3

penicillata (NW NSW)

Competition near water

© MD

More White-plumed Honeyeater sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

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.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site? If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.

Disclaimer: Comments are always welcome. We give no guarantee that the information presented on these pages is always correct or up-to-date. External links are marked as such and we take no responsibility for the contents of external pages. All images on this site are protected by copyright & used by permission of the respective owners. If you wish to reproduce them or any of the material presented on this web site, please contact us: We hereby acknowledge the original custodians of the land which is described on these pages, including the Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people of the North-west Slopes and Plains of NSW, and the traditional owners of other lands and nations within this country. We acknowledge elders past, present and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded.          Last updated: Thu, 23 March 2023, 6:43 +00:00