Orange-bellied Leafbird and bottle-brush trees
Posted by BESG on 8 October 08, Wednesday
Contributed by Dr Eric Tan
The Orange-bellied Leafbird (Chloropsis hardwickii), a resident of the montane forests of Peninsular Malaysia, is always present whenever the bottlebrush trees (Callistemon spp.) are in flowers.
This is an attractive green bird with yellow-orange belly. The male (above) has a black mask and black throat, not th female (left).
The bird visits a wide range of flowering plants, including exotics, to collect nectar. It has a long tongue that extrudes beyond the tip of the bill, even when the latter is closed. The tongue is channeled and brush-tipped, to assist in nectar collection. But it also takes a variety of fruits and insects.
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All images by Dr Eric Tan.
This post is a cooperative effort between NaturePixels.org and BESG to bring the study of bird behaviour through photography to a wider audience.
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Categories: Feeding-plants, Plants
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