Melidectes
Encyclopedia
Melidectes is a genus of bird
in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. Nine of its ten species are endemic to New Guinea
; the tenth species, the Bismarck Melidectes
, is endemic to nearby New Britain
. The Bismarck Melidectes is sometimes considered to constitute its own genus, Vosea, or has been placed with the Sooty Melidectes
, the Long-bearded Melidectes
and the Short-bearded Melidectes
in the genus Melionyx due to similarities in size, plumage and the smaller bare patch around the eye. The generic name is derived from the Greek
meli for honey and dektes for beggar or receiver.
and bare patch around the eye which is quite large and brightly coloured in some species. Their plumage
varies from mostly patterened grey in the Sooty Melidectes
to a brightly contrasting white, black and fawn in the Ornate Melidectes
.
and the Yellow-browed Melidectes
in the Schrader Range
s, the two species exclude
each other and occur at different attitudes.
has also been recorded eating seeds. They feed in all levels of the forest, and in shrubs and thickets in more open environments. Some have been recorded feeding on the ground, either on ground plants or picking through the leaf-litter. They usually feed as singles, also foraging in pairs or small groups. Like many honeyeaters they may be aggressive towards other birds, including berrypeckers
, painted berrypeckers, other honeyeaters and even other members of the genus. One study found that the Belford's Melidectes aggressively defended the flowers of the terrestrial root parasite Mitrastemmaa from the Ornate Melidectes.
, is considered to be threatened with extinction
due to habitat loss, and it is therefore listed as vulnerable
by the IUCN. The Bismarck Melidectes is considered to be near threatened
due to forest clearance on New Britain. Many of the other species of melidectes are restricted range species, occupying small global ranges; in many cases single mountain ranges. The most widespread species, the Ornate Melidectes, has actually benefited from human activities. That species prefers forest edge, secondary growth and gardens, and has apparently increased in numbers.
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. Nine of its ten species are endemic to New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
; the tenth species, the Bismarck Melidectes
Bismarck Melidectes
The Bismarck Melidectes is a bird species in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests....
, is endemic to nearby New Britain
New Britain
New Britain, or Niu Briten, is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from the island of New Guinea by the Dampier and Vitiaz Straits and from New Ireland by St. George's Channel...
. The Bismarck Melidectes is sometimes considered to constitute its own genus, Vosea, or has been placed with the Sooty Melidectes
Sooty Melidectes
The Sooty Honeyeater , also known as the Sooty Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes....
, the Long-bearded Melidectes
Long-bearded Melidectes
The Long-bearded Honeyeater , also known as the Long-bearded Melidectes, is a bird in the Honeyeater family.-Description:...
and the Short-bearded Melidectes
Short-bearded Melidectes
The Short-bearded Honeyeater , also known as the Short-bearded Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...
in the genus Melionyx due to similarities in size, plumage and the smaller bare patch around the eye. The generic name is derived from the Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
meli for honey and dektes for beggar or receiver.
Description
They are medium sized honeyeaters, varied in appearance but possessing a long and sometimes stout billBeak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
and bare patch around the eye which is quite large and brightly coloured in some species. Their plumage
Plumage
Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...
varies from mostly patterened grey in the Sooty Melidectes
Sooty Melidectes
The Sooty Honeyeater , also known as the Sooty Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes....
to a brightly contrasting white, black and fawn in the Ornate Melidectes
Ornate Melidectes
The Ornate Melidectes or Ornate Honeyeater is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family.It is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:...
.
Habitat
The genus is overwhelmingly restricted to montane environments. They occupy mountain forest, forest edge, alpine shrubland and shrubby thickets in grasslands. In some instances where two species occupy similar ranges, for example the Belford's MelidectesBelford's Melidectes
Belford's Honeyeater , also known as Belford's Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 26...
and the Yellow-browed Melidectes
Yellow-browed Melidectes
The Yellow-browed Honeyeater , also known as the Yellow-browed Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...
in the Schrader Range
Schrader Range
Schrader Range is a mountain range in central Papua New Guinea, at about . It is a part of the Bismarck Range.- External links :*...
s, the two species exclude
Competitive exclusion principle
In ecology, the competitive exclusion principle, sometimes referred to as Gause's law of competitive exclusion or just Gause's law, is a proposition which states that two species competing for the same resources cannot coexist if other ecological factors are constant...
each other and occur at different attitudes.
Feeding
The diet of the melidectes is not known for all species, but for those that are known it consists of insects, nectar, pollen, fruit and berries. The Short-bearded MelidectesShort-bearded Melidectes
The Short-bearded Honeyeater , also known as the Short-bearded Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...
has also been recorded eating seeds. They feed in all levels of the forest, and in shrubs and thickets in more open environments. Some have been recorded feeding on the ground, either on ground plants or picking through the leaf-litter. They usually feed as singles, also foraging in pairs or small groups. Like many honeyeaters they may be aggressive towards other birds, including berrypeckers
Melanocharitidae
The Melanocharitidae, the berrypeckers and longbills, is a small bird family restricted to the forests of New Guinea. The family contains ten species in four genera...
, painted berrypeckers, other honeyeaters and even other members of the genus. One study found that the Belford's Melidectes aggressively defended the flowers of the terrestrial root parasite Mitrastemmaa from the Ornate Melidectes.
Status and conservation
One species, the Long-bearded MelidectesLong-bearded Melidectes
The Long-bearded Honeyeater , also known as the Long-bearded Melidectes, is a bird in the Honeyeater family.-Description:...
, is considered to be threatened with extinction
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...
due to habitat loss, and it is therefore listed as vulnerable
Vulnerable species
On 30 January 2010, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 9694 Vulnerable species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and sub-populations.-References:...
by the IUCN. The Bismarck Melidectes is considered to be near threatened
Near Threatened
Near Threatened is a conservation status assigned to species or lower taxa that may be considered threatened with extinction in the near future, although it does not currently qualify for the threatened status...
due to forest clearance on New Britain. Many of the other species of melidectes are restricted range species, occupying small global ranges; in many cases single mountain ranges. The most widespread species, the Ornate Melidectes, has actually benefited from human activities. That species prefers forest edge, secondary growth and gardens, and has apparently increased in numbers.
Species
The genus contains the following species:- Belford's MelidectesBelford's MelidectesBelford's Honeyeater , also known as Belford's Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 26...
(Melidectes belfordi) - Huon MelidectesHuon MelidectesThe Huon Honeyeater or Huon Melidectes is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family.It is endemic to Papua New Guinea.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:...
(Melidectes foersteri) - Sooty MelidectesSooty MelidectesThe Sooty Honeyeater , also known as the Sooty Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes....
(Melidectes fuscus) - Vogelkop MelidectesVogelkop MelidectesThe Vogelkop Melidectes is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family.It is endemic to West Papua, Indonesia.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:...
(Melidectes leucostephes) - Short-bearded MelidectesShort-bearded MelidectesThe Short-bearded Honeyeater , also known as the Short-bearded Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...
(Melidectes nouhuysi) - Cinnamon-browed MelidectesCinnamon-browed MelidectesThe Cinnamon-browed Honeyeater , also known as the Cinnamon-browed Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...
(Melidectes ochromelas) - Long-bearded MelidectesLong-bearded MelidectesThe Long-bearded Honeyeater , also known as the Long-bearded Melidectes, is a bird in the Honeyeater family.-Description:...
(Melidectes princeps) - Yellow-browed MelidectesYellow-browed MelidectesThe Yellow-browed Honeyeater , also known as the Yellow-browed Melidectes, is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...
(Melidectes rufocrissalis) - Ornate MelidectesOrnate MelidectesThe Ornate Melidectes or Ornate Honeyeater is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family.It is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:...
(Melidectes torquatus) - Bismarck MelidectesBismarck MelidectesThe Bismarck Melidectes is a bird species in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests....
(Melidectes whitemanensis)