Blog Archives

Yellow-faced Honeyeater at entrance to Manly Dam

As I was walking through the gates at Manly Dam park, I heard this little Yellow-faced Honeyeater in the bushes at the roadside:

These birds move very fast, as you can tell from the video. It was only a few months ago that I saw my very first one. Now that I know what they are, I’ve seen a few of them. They have a distinctive yellow stripe running under the eye.

Here’s a still photo of the bird:

Common name: Yellow-faced Honeyeater
Scientific name: Lichenostomus chrisops
Approximate length: 16-18 cm
Date spotted: 10 July 2023 (winter)
Location: Manly Dam, New South Wales, Australia: 33°46’58.0″S 151°15’21.0″E

Two more Yellow-faced Honeyeaters!

A few weeks back, I saw my first ever Yellow-faced Honeyeater (recorded in this blog post). At that time, I was near the little town of Capertee, out west of Sydney. Since then, to my surprise, I’ve spotted two of them at my frequent haunt: Manly Dam on Sydney’s Northern Beaches.

The first occasion was when I was filming an Eastern Spinebill that was dipping itself into a quiet pool in the creek that feeds Manly Dam. Towards the end of the video, another bird flutters into view. It’s a Yellow-faced Honeyeater:

The above two birds were on the northern shore of Manly Dam, right where the smaller creek merges to form the north-eastern arm of the dam (33°46’24.5″S 151°15’05.8″E).

A couple of weeks later, I saw another Yellow-faced Honeyeater, this time in the forest on the southern shore of the dam (33°46’50.5″S 151°14’54.1″E):

Common name: Yellow-faced Honeyeater
Scientific name: Lichenostomus chrisops
Approximate length: 16-18 cm
Date spotted: 14th and 26th May 2023 (autumn)
Location: Manly Dam, New South Wales, Australia: 33°46’50.5″S 151°14’54.1″E

Yellow-faced Honeyeater near Capertee

Yet another first sighting for me: a Yellow-faced Honeyeater that I spotted during last week’s trip out west of Sydney. I was taking an early-morning walk in the countryside near the little town of Capertee. It’s gorgeous out there. Rolling hills, vistas of the Blue Mountains, Eucalypt forests, and green grassy clearings.

Yellow-faced Honeyeaters feed on manna, nectar, and small insects. They get their name from the yellow streak that runs across the face below the eye. The streak is bordered in black. Other colours on the bird range from off-white to grey-brown, with olive-yellow edges on the wings.

Common name: Yellow-faced Honeyeater
Scientific name: Lichenostomus chrisops
Approximate length: 16-18 cm
Date spotted: 23 April 2023 (autumn)
Location: Long Ridge, Capertee, New South Wales, Australia: 33°09’53.9″S 150°00’06.2″E