The Red-headed Myzomela or Red-headed Honeyeater (Myzomela erythrocephala) is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae, found in Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. Three subspecies are recognised, with the nominate race M. erythrocephala erythrocephala distributed around the tropical coastline of Australia.
At 12 centimetres (4.7 in), it is a small honeyeater with a short tail and relatively long down-curved bill. It is sexually dimorphic and the male has a glossy red head and brown upperparts and paler grey-brown underparts while the female has predominantly grey-brown plumage. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical mangrove forests. It is very active when feeding in the tree canopy, darting from flower to flower and sallying for insects. It calls constantly as it feeds. While little has been documented on the Red-headed Myzomela’s breeding behaviour, it is recorded as building a small cup-shaped nest in the mangroves and laying two or three oval, white eggs with small red blotches.
The Red-headed Myzomela is widely distributed across the northern coastlines of Australia, though it is not abundant within this range. While one sub-species is listed as Near Threatened, as a whole the widespread range means that its conservation is of Least Concern.
Read more about Red-headed Myzomela: Taxonomy, Description, Distribution and Habitat, Conservation Status
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