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Mistletoebird |
Sightings
A regular guest at our place and also our former neighbour's property, we spotted Mistletoebirds a couple of times up to October 2006. However, it took us 3 years to obtain good-quality shots of a male; in these (below) note the red spot on the lores, which are not mentioned in the two field guides we use and which we did not see again on other birds later. /
A pair of Mistletoebirds were residents 20 km east of Narrabri during the summer of 2006/07. Not seen for a few months during the winter; returned in late September.
Photos
Frontal view of a male Mistletoebird in a bottlebrush tree (click on image for larger version)
Lateral view of the same male Mistletoebird (click on image for larger version)
Lateral view of a male Mistletoebird 20 km east of Narrabri (click on image for full-size display)
The same male seen from behind (click on image for full-size display)
Here, for comparison, a male with a much broader stripe across its breast (click on image for larger version)
View of a female Mistletoebird (against sunlight; click on image for full-size display)
Female Mistletoebird hiding in dense foliage of a Eucalypt tree for a good night's sleep (click on image for larger version)
Flowers on a mistletoe branch; they are a major attraction to many nectar-eating birds, such as e.g. Singing Honeyeaters (click on image for larger version)
Frontal view of a juvenile Mistletoebird
Lateral view of a juvenile Mistletoebird
Nest
The nest in the photo below was located 40 km east of Narrabri, NSW. The chicks left it around Christmas 2007.
Female Mistletoebird ducking into its nest (click on image for larger version)
Here she is, settled in (click on image for larger version)