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Yellow Honeyeater (Stomiopera flava) Size: 17-18 cm Body mass: 17-31 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 Graceful Honeyeater Lewin's Honeyeater Yellow-faced Honeyeater Bridled Honeyeater Eungella Honeyeater Singing Honeyeater Mangrove Honeyeater Varied Honeyeater White-lined Honeyeater Kimberley Honeyeater White-gaped Honeyeater Yellow Honeyeater White-eared 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 Green-backed Honeyeater Brown Honeyeater Bar-breasted Honeyeater Brown-backed Honeyeater Rufous-throated Honeyeater Grey Honeyeater Tawny-crowned Honeyeater Rufous-banded Honeyeater White-streaked 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 Garden 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 Yellow Honeyeaters are small nectar-eating birds. They have an all-yellow front, while the back is yellow with an olive tinge. They have an inconspicuous thin grey eye stripe and the wing coverts have grey edges. When ruffled, the feathers show grey underparts. The irises are brown. The slightly down-curved bill is dark-grey; the legs and feet are grey.

Taxonomy, classification See Yellow 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 Yellow Honeyeater is available HERE . There are two races of Yellow Honeyeaters, both of which are endemic to north-eastern Australia. Nominate race "flava" is found on Cape York peninsula, from the confluence of the Norman River into the Arafura Sea near Karumba, QLD, in the West, to just North of Cairns, QLD, in the East. South-east of a line through Kewarra Beach, QLD, and Mareeba, QLD, along a narrowing coastal strip reaching to about Cape Palmerston NP, South of Mackay, QLD, race "addendus" resides. Yellow Honeyeaters have a preference for tropical forest and mangroves, but are also found in urban parks and gardens.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "flava" R. Russell reports spotting a Yellow Honeyeater, race "flava", at Mount Molloy, QLD, in December 2009. A pair with dependent juveniles was found at the same location in May 2020. M. Mearns reports finding Yellow Honeyeaters, race "flava", at Mount Croydon, QLD, in July 2016. B. Hensen spotted Yellow Honeyeaters, race "flava", at Iron Range NP, QLD, in December 2018. J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours found a Yellow Honeyeater, race "flava", at Abattoir Swamp, Julatten, QLD, in December 2020. M. Eaton also spotted a Yellow Honeyeater, race "flava", at Julatten, QLD, in June 2024. Race "addendus" A Yellow Honeyeater, race "addendus", was spotted by L. Tonnochy 20 km West of Townsville, QLD, in the period May-September 2012. B. Hensen reports spotting Yellow Honeyeaters, race "addendus", in Cairns, QLD, in June 2013, and another near Cairns, QLD, in December 2018. M. Eaton reports finding Yellow Honeyeaters, race "addendus", semi-regularly in (near-)coastal locations in eastern QLD. C. Linfoot reports spotting Yellow Honeyeaters, race "addendus", occasionally at Hervey Range, near Townsfille, QLD.

Photos

Race "flava"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal/ventral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Croydon, QLD, July 2016]

Near-frontal view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Julatten, QLD, June 2024]

Near-frontal view of a Yellow Honeyeater with its wire brush tongue sticking out
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Julatten, QLD, June 2024]

Near-frontal view of a preening Yellow Honeyeater, showing its underwing pattern
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Julatten, QLD, June 2024]

Close-up lateral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Abattoir Swamp, Julatten, QLD, December 2020]

Lateral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Iron Range NP, QLD, December 2018]

Partly obscured lateral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Croydon, QLD, July 2016]

Near-dorsal view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of R. Russell)
[Mount Molloy, QLD, December 2009]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Lateral view of a juvenile Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of R. Russell)
[Mount Molloy, QLD, May 2020]

Lateral view of a juvenile Yellow Honeyeater - note the pink gape (photo courtesy of R. Russell)
[Mount Molloy, QLD, May 2020]

Lateral view of a juvenile Yellow Honeyeater - note the pink gape (photo courtesy of R. Russell)
[Mount Molloy, QLD, May 2020]

Juvenile Yellow Honeyeater, back, gobbling up food that has just been served by one of its parents, front
(photo courtesy of R. Russell)
[Mount Molloy, QLD, May 2020]

Race "addendus"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Close-up frontal view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Tyto Wetlands, Ingham, QLD, September 2020]

Close-up frontal view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Tyto Wetlands, Ingham, QLD, September 2020]

Frontal view of a Yellow Honeyeater in a Grevillea (photo courtesy of C. Linfoot)
[Hervey Range, near Townsville, QLD, March 2022]

Close-up near-frontal view of a Yellow Honeyeater visiting a Grevillea flower (photo courtesy of C. Linfoot)
[Hervey Range, near Townsville, QLD, September 2022]

Near-frontal view of a Yellow Honeyeater basking in the sun (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Rocky Creek, Cairns, QLD, July 2013]

Close-up lateral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Tyto Wetlands, Ingham, QLD, September 2020]

Lateral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Rocky Creek, Cairns, QLD, July 2013]

Lateral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cairns, QLD, July 2018]

Lateral view of a Yellow Honeyeater just out of the bathtub (photo courtesy of L. Tonnochy)
[Near Townsville, QLD, September 2012]

Lateral view of a Yellow Honeyeater just out of the bathtub (photo courtesy of L. Tonnochy)
[Near Townsville, QLD, September 2012]

Near-dorsal view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of L. Tonnochy)
[Near Townsville, QLD, September 2012]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Kuranda, near Cairns, QLD, July 2018]

Dorsal view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of L. Tonnochy)
[Near Townsville, QLD, September 2012]

Close-up ventral view of a Yellow Honeyeater (photo courtesy of C. Linfoot)
[Hervey Range, near Townsville, QLD, September 2022]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Communal

Mobility: Sedentary

Elementary unit: Pair/mob

Food, Diet

Yellow Honeyaters feed primarily on nectar, but they take insects as well.

Yellow Honeyeater foraging for insects behind strips of bark (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Botanical Gardens, Mackay, QLD, July 2021]

Yellow Honeyeater with its prey, a small flying insect (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Botanical Gardens, Mackay, QLD, July 2021]

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.

yelhon_me_20240612.m4a

flava (Far-N QLD)

Contact calls?

© ME

More Yellow 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.

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