Eastern Spinebill
Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris
Anne Bowman
Print of original artwork - Anne works in pastel, watercolour & pencil.
35cm x 34cm (image 24cm x 27cm)
The Eastern Spinebill is one of our smallest honeyeaters. It is one of two species in the Genus Acanthorhynchus.
There are 4 sub-species of the Eastern Spinebill..A.t. cairnsensis, A.t. dubius, A.t. halmaturinus, and the nominate subspecies A.t. tenuirostris. This bird is found in forested regions, as well as in urban gardens, throughout Tasmania, eastern South Australia, through NSW and up into Queensland...
The Eastern Spinebill is around 15 cm in length, and has a long thin downcurved black bill. The average body weight in 11g. Males have a white throat and a bib that covers only the throat, with a black, divided, crescent separating it from the cinnamon coloured underparts. They have a greyish-brown back, a brownish-red nape and a black head. The upper tail and inner wings are grey, the rest black. The legs are black. In adults, the iris is red but is dark brown in juveniles, which also have an orange base to the bill and grey to olive -brown underparts.
Females are similar to males but have more of an olive-greyish appearance, with pinkish-grey feet and legs.
The Eastern Spinebill feeds on nectar from many plants, as well as eating small insects and other invertebrates. It breeds from August to December, with an average of 2 eggs per clutch.
A significant threat to the birds is predation by cats, both domestic cats, in gardens, and feral cats. The increase in feral cats populations is particularly detrimental. However, despite population declines of over 30% in recent years, the IUCN Red List labels the species as 'Least Concern'.
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