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Spinebill

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Also known as Acanthorhynchus

Spinebill is the name given to two members of the honeyeater family, both in the genus Acanthorhynchus, which is Latin for "spine bill". They are around 15 centimetres in length, and are coloured black, white and chestnut, with a long, downcurved bill. They are native to Australia, with one species in the east and one in the west. They feed on nectar as well as insects, and live mainly in forests, gardens, and other shrubbery habitats.

Species

Eastern Spinebill

Genus

  1. PhylumChordata
  2. ClassAves
  3. OrderPasseriformes
  4. FamilyMeliphagidae
Observations10,071

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Wikidata facts

Instance of
taxon
Parent taxon
Meliphagidae
Image
Spinebill3.jpg
Show 4 more facts
Commons category
Acanthorhynchus
taxon rank
genus
taxon name
Acanthorhynchus
topic's main category
Category:Acanthorhynchus
Sources (2)

via Wikidata · CC0

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Encyclopedic overview

3 sections
Contents
  • Species and distribution
  • References
  • External links

Spinebill is the name given to two members of the honeyeater family, both in the genus Acanthorhynchus, which is Latin for "spine bill". They are around 15 centimetres in length, and are coloured black, white and chestnut, with a long, downcurved bill. They are native to Australia, with one species in the east and one in the west. They feed on nectar as well as insects, and live mainly in forests, gardens, and other shrubbery habitats.

A 2004 molecular study has shown that the two spinebills are a sister grouping to all other honeyeaters, that is, they diverged earlier than all other species.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Spinebill” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (3)