Blue-faced Honeyeater
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Australia has many honeyeaters with over sixty different species. I have recorded ten different species in our garden, with all except three being resident breeding species. They are a constant delight as many of them frequently visit the various flowering plants around our property as well as visiting our bird baths many times a day.
One beautiful species that does not visit our garden is the Blue-faced Honeyeater shown in the photos on this page. This is a widespread species across the northern and eastern parts of Australia, except for the extreme south-east. Its preferred habitats include open forests, along water courses, woodlands, parks, gardens, golf courses, farmlands and along roadside vegetation.
The bird shown in these photos was seen in the Hattah-Kulkyne National Park in north-west Victoria while on a brief visit in September 2007.
For additional reading about honeyeaters click here.
Related articles:
- Royal Spoonbill, Hattah-Kulkyne National Park
- Noisy Miner - Hattah-Kulkyne National Park
- Mallee Scrub, Hattah-Kulkyne National Park
- Hattah-Kulkyne National Park
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Follow my Twitters
Hi Trevor,
WE holidayed at Hattah (among other places) in Sep. and one of the first birds to “mob” us while we were setting up camp was a Blue-faced Honeyeater. Then we didn’t see any more for the rest of our stay!
I’ve actually had them turn up in a few unexpected places over the years, meaning that I didn’t expect to see them in certain places. Then on other occasions I’ve hoped to see them - only to be disappointed. Something of an enigma bird for me.
Hi
The picture you have of the blue faced honeyeater above, is in abundance on our 5 acre property at Humpty Doo in Darwin. I would like to know if it is safe to feed them bread cut into small pieces. We have been doing this, but sometimes I find them dead in our garden and I know its not our dogs, as they are old and not capable of catching them.
Please advise.
Kind Regards
Hi there Vicki,
Welcome to my blog. Thanks for leaving a comment and a question.
Most experts agree that it is unwise to feed wild birds, especially with bread. Most honeyeaters are either nectivorous (nectar eating) or insectivorous (insect eating) and many eat both. Bread and most other human food is not part of their normal diet and it is actually harmful and can cause choking and death.
Don’t be tempted to provide honey for honeyeaters either - it is very hard to get the mix just right and I think it’s actually illegal (something to do with attracting bees).
The most effective way of attracting and keeping birds to your garden is to plant trees and scrubs suitable to your local environment and providing water suitable for the birds to drink and bathe in.
For more information read these articles:
http://www.trevorsbirding.com/attracting-birds-to-your-garden/
http://www.basq.org.au/facts/feedbirds.htm
Hi, I’ve been aware of the blue-faced honeyeater visiting my part-native-garden located at the edge of the Great Divide in a village setting, for several seasons. the little guys seem to visit at the beginning of Autumn and leave at the beginning of winter. From my observations they seem to love to eat nectar especially grevillia flowers. Nothing I’ve so far read has told me about migration habits, but they seem to have some regular ones! DebS