Eungella Honeyeater

A distinctive fantail, all dark except for a white throat and a short white eyebrow. The tail, often fanned, is a shade darker with white tips to all tail feathers except the central pair. Juvenile is like adult, but with reduced white on face and brownish edges to the dark body feathers. Gives very harsh contact calls. Song is a musical phrase of 6-7 notes that ascends first and then descends. Found in a wide range of wooded habitats, from dense forest to forest edge and gardens, from lowlands up into the mountains.

A small seed-eating species of forest edges, open woodlands, and nearby weedy areas; usually found in groups of two to five birds. Both sexes have bright yellow-green shoulders and a buff vent, which are diagnostic but can be difficult to see. Otherwise, the Black-faced Grassquit is rather similar, but can be distinguished by its slimmer bill and duller back. Furthermore, male Yellow-shouldered Grassquits have an entirely black head, whereas black is limited to the face on the Black-faced Grassquit. The song is a series of four or five high-pitched buzzy notes that either rising or dropping in pitch, followed by one to three notes at another different pitch.

A nest parasite that lays its eggs in the nests of Yellow-winged Pytilias. As with other whydahs, breeding males are spectacular and bizarre, whereas non-breeding males and females are drab and inconspicuous. Breeding males are mostly black with a rufous breast, a yellow back of the neck, and a long, narrow tail. Non-breeding male and female plumages are poorly known, but show a streaky brownish back and pale underparts. Generally scarce and local in savanna and cultivated areas. Breeding male similar to other paradise-whydahs, but has a longer and narrower tail. Separation of non-breeding male and female from other paradise-whydahs is poorly understood. Not very vocal, but does mimic Yellow-winged Pytilia vocalizations, which include simple, nasal “teew” notes.