Honeyeater
Diverse Australasian nectar-feeders unrelated to similar birds elsewhere.
The honeyeaters are a large and diverse family, Meliphagidae, of small to medium-sized birds. They are most common in Australia and New Guinea, but can also be found in New Zealand, the Pacific islands as far east as Samoa and Tonga, and the Indonesian islands known as Wallacea. They are part of the superfamily Meliphagoidea, which includes their closest relatives, and originated early in the evolutionary history of the oscine passerine radiation.
- Family
- Meliphagidae
- Number of genera
- 55
- Primary range
- Australia and New Guinea
- Also found in
- New Zealand, Pacific islands (Samoa, Tonga), Wallacea, Bali
- Diet
- Nectarivorous, insectivorous, frugivorous, or mixed
- Key trait
- Brush-tipped tongue for nectar feeding
Lore & Background
Honeyeaters can be nectarivorous, insectivorous, frugivorous, or a combination of nectar- and insect-eating. Unlike hummingbirds, they do not have extensive adaptations for hovering flight, though smaller members do hover occasionally. They prefer to flit quickly from perch to perch, stretching or hanging upside down. Many genera have a highly developed brush-tipped tongue, frayed and fringed with bristles that soak up liquids, which is flicked rapidly into flowers. In addition to nectar, nearly all take insects by hawking or gleaning; some larger species probe under bark. Many supplement their diet with fruit, and the painted honeyeater is a mistletoe specialist. Longer-billed species are more nectarivorous, but even specialized nectar eaters take insects when breeding.
Reader's Guide
The honeyeaters are significant for their extensive, though not fully understood, evolutionary partnership with Australasian flowering plants. A great many Australian plants, particularly in the families Proteaceae, Myrtaceae, and Ericaceae, are fertilized by honeyeaters via pollination. They are also important in New Zealand, and likely in other areas. Their movements are poorly understood; most are at least partially mobile, with many following the flowering of favorite food plants. Arid zone species appear to travel further and less predictably. The family has undergone taxonomic revisions: the genera Cleptornis and Apalopteron were transferred to Zosteropidae, Notiomystis was moved to its own family, and MacGregor's bird-of-paradise was reclassified as a honeyeater.
Did You Know?
- Honeyeaters are unrelated to sunbirds and flowerpeckers; similarities are due to convergent evolution.
- The painted honeyeater is a mistletoe specialist.
- MacGregor's bird-of-paradise was recently reclassified as a honeyeater, now called MacGregor's honeyeater.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are honeyeaters?
Honeyeaters are a large, diverse family of small to medium-sized songbirds (Meliphagidae) that feed primarily on nectar. They are native to Australasia and represent one of the most species-rich bird families in the region.
Where can you find honeyeaters?
They are most abundant across Australia and New Guinea, but their range also stretches to New Zealand, the Pacific islands as far as Samoa and Tonga, and the Indonesian archipelago region known as Wallacea.
What do honeyeaters eat?
While nectar is their signature food source, honeyeaters are dietary generalists — many also eat insects, fruit, or a combination of all three. This flexibility helps them thrive across a wide variety of habitats.
Are honeyeaters related to hummingbirds or sunbirds?
No — despite similar nectar-feeding lifestyles, honeyeaters are oscine passerines that evolved independently in Australasia. They belong to the superfamily Meliphagoidea and are not closely related to the hummingbirds or sunbirds that fill a comparable ecological niche elsewhere.
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