Lewin's Honeyeater

About the Lewin's Honeyeater

Lewin's honeyeater (Meliphaga lewinii) is a bird that inhabits the ranges along the east coast of Australia. It has a semicircular ear-patch, pale yellow in colour. Another name is Yellow-eared Honeyeater. The Lewin's honeyeater is small to medium in size, around 19–22 cm (7.5–8.7 in) long with a weight of 27–49 g. The average wingspan is 8.4–10.6 cm (3.3 to 4.2 in), and the bill is 2.0–2.7 cm in length. It is dark greenish-grey in colour, with a creamy yellow gape (i.e., the fleshy corners of the mouth). It has large, yellowish, crescent-shaped ear-patches, which distinguish it from other honeyeaters, apart from two similar, but smaller, species in tropical Queensland. In flight, the pale yellow edges of the flight feathers can be seen. The bill is black and the eye is blue-grey. Both sexes are similar in appearance. Young Lewin's honeyeaters are similar to the adults, but have brown eyes. The strong 'machine gun-like' rattling notes of Lewin's honeyeater are heard over long distances, and reveal its presence in an area.

Body size, voice, and the shape and size of the ear-patch help in identifying the similar Graceful and Yellow-spotted Honeyeaters in tropical Queensland... Wikipedia →