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Key plants used by Australian birds:
Eucalypt (Eucalyptus, Corymbia, Angophora [...])

Aboriginal names: "carcoola", "waralya" = Eucalypt [Aboriginal]
For more Aboriginal names of various species of eucalypts, click here.

Eucalypts are woody plants belonging to three closely related genera: Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Angophora. All of them are called "eucalypts". They dominate the landscapes of the Australian continent and are therefore of crucial importance in basically every terrestrial Australian biotope. This is reflected in the enormous number of bird species using them in one way or another (see list below). Eucalypts are evergreens; they flower some time after rainfall and it is normal for only part of a plant to flower at any one time. This means that parts of trees can blossom at different times of the year, thereby creating a staggered supply of nectar made available to birds. This page presents just a few examples. Eucalypts are usually found in open forest or woodland.

Because of their importance there are separate pages on the following eucalypt species: River Red Gum and Swamp Mahogany.

Bird species found in this type of habitat or plant

This is not necessarily a complete list. We display here some examples of bird species found by us in this kind of habitat or plant. Hover your cursor on thumbnails to see names of species; click on thumbnail to go to the page describing the species.

Photos

Example of an eucalypt tree: Ironbark eucalypt

Flowers and seeds of an ironbark eucalypt

Flowers of a mugga ironbark eucalypt in Pilliga NP

Example of a different type of eucalypt flowers: Eucalyptus citriodora ("Lemon-scented Gumtree")

One of the dominant species of eucalypt along the Australian South-East coast is Angophora costata ("Sydney Red Gum")
[Wyrrabalong NP, NSW, July 2013]

Honey bee feeding on flowers of Angophora costata ("Sydney Red Gum")
[Munmorah SCA, NSW, July 2013]

Little Friarbird feasting on the nectar of an eucalypt tree

Eucalypt tree in which a pair of Australian Wood Ducks were found nesting
[Eulah Creek, NSW, April 2014]

Eucalypts have the ability to flower only on individual branches; it is not often seen that an entire tree crown is in bloom.

Eucalypt tree, with its entire crown in bloom, in which a pair of Australian Magpies were found nesting
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2018]

Flowers of the eucalypt shown above
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2018]

Flowers of the eucalypt shown above
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2018]

Eucalypts, in this case a Mugga Ironbark, Eucalyptus sideroxylon, have the ability to blossom again on branches that still have last season's fruit attached to them

Direct comparison of two eucalypts (Rusty Gums, Angophora leiocarpa) with different types of growth: On the left a tree with "normal" growth, with one thick trunk; on the right a tree with "mallee"-type growth, i.e. multiple thin trunks

Usage

This is not necessarily a complete list. We collate here various ways in which birds can use various types of plant.

Perch Roost Shade Food Nectar Fruit Seed Prey Nest
space
Nest
mat.
Shelter Vantage
point

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.