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Mistletoebird (female)
Dicaeum hirundinaceum hirundinaceum
-17.35, 123.67
Field Notes
Description:
This beautiful little female is a grey-white colour from under her throat all the way to the red patch under the tail. She has a grey head which extends all the way down her back. "Unlike many other birds, the mistletoebird has no gizzard - a specialised pouch behind its stomach - to grind its food, which means the fruit of the berries can be digested without the seeds inside being destroyed." (Australian Geographic) They are the only member of the flowerpecker family in Australia.
Habitat:
Hanging about in the trees and bushes with the several males Mistletoebirds I had seen at the mini wetlands at the prison boab tree.
Notes:
I was lucky enough to see several Mistletoe bird males hanging around amongst the trees and bushes. This was the only female I saw! "As the mistletoe has been in Australia for a long time and mistletoebirds for a relatively short time, the mistletoe seed was distributed originally by non-specialized frugivore birds like the honeyeater. Even though the mistletoebird has evolved into a very efficient local distributor of mistletoe seeds, the mistletoebird needs the mistletoe but the mistletoe does not need the mistletoebird." (Wiki)
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