Yellow-tinted Honeyeater Egg (in nest)
Lichenostomus flavescens
-17.3, 123.63
Field Notes
Description:
This is a Yellow-tinted Honeyeater egg. It is a lightly speckled pink egg. As I didn't want to touch it and I didn't have a measuring device on me, a guess at the length would be approximately 20-25mm (0.79-0.98 inches). At the largest circumference approximately 40-70mm (1.57-2.76 inches) and smallest approximately 20-40mm (0.79-1.57 inches). Here is the link to the only picture of a Yellow-tinted Honeyeater egg I could find on the internet: http://collections.australianmuseum.net.au/amweb/pages/common/imagedisp… The bird itself is small with an overall yellowish colour, including face and throat though a paler yellow, with obvious black curved line and adjacent yellow patch at the neck. The wings and back are grey with yellow on the wing. Under parts yellowish with light pale grey streaking on the breast. Beak black. Tail is grey, edged with yellow. See this spotting for a view of the bird: http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/1822786002
Habitat:
The nest is cup shaped, attached to and suspended from the leaves and a small branch. In a tall plant in the front yard in Derby.
Notes:
This is the same tree I found a nest in last year (see this spotting for last year: http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/1825506002 ). Only this time there is an egg in it! I had noticed two of these little birds flying in and out of this plant and figured there had to be a nest. It was only this morning that I actually found the nest - all I saw was the bottom of it through the leaves. So I launched an investigation and this is what I came up with :) Though the bird did fly off, I definitely saw an adult (probably the female) back on the nest (see pic 2). Pic 3 shows the outside of the nest and, where and how it is attached to the leaves.
Reference: The Michael Morcombe eGuide to Australian Birds, Mobile App.
Further reading: http://www.australianbushbirds.info/infl/lichenostomus_flavescens.html
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