Flowerpecker
Flowerpeckers, belonging to the family Dicaeidae, are small birds primarily found in the woodlands and forests of southern Asia, New Guinea, and Australia. This family includes various genera, predominantly Dicaeum and Prionochilus, with species counts ranging from 45 to 56. These birds are known for their feeding habits, which include pecking at small insects and consuming nectar, as well as a variety of berries, particularly mistletoe berries. Flowerpeckers typically measure between three to six inches in length and are characterized by their glossy plumage, with some species displaying bright coloration in males.
They are social birds, often forming small flocks outside the breeding season, and exhibit unique nesting behaviors, building either cup-shaped nests or hanging nests with side entrances. Female flowerpeckers lay one to three eggs that are incubated for about 12 days. While many flowerpecker populations are stable, certain species face threats from habitat loss, with some listed as Critically Endangered or Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Their role in seed dispersal, particularly of berries, highlights their ecological importance within their habitats.
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Flowerpecker
Flowerpeckers receive their name from their practice of pecking small insects and possibly nectar from flowers. They are also called berry peckers and mistletoe birds because they eat many different kinds of berries, particularly the many kinds of white mistletoe berries, the same ones which people hang over doorways at Christmas and New Year's Day.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Dicaeidae
Genus: Various (see below)
Species: Various (see below)
The woodlands and forests of southern Asia, the islands east and south of the continent, New Guinea, and Australia are home to the family Dicaeidae, commonly known as flowerpeckers. There are two genera, Dicaeum and Prionochilus, within the family, but sources vary on how many species of the flowerpecker exist. Some claim as low as 45 species, while others list as many as 56.
Most flowerpeckers are small, measuring three to six inches (8 to 15 centimeters) long and weighing between 1/5 and 1/2 ounce (5 1/2 and 14 grams). One species, the crested berrypecker, reaches eight inches (21 centimeters) in length and one to two ounces (28 to 56 grams) in weight. Members of this species are the only ones in the family with crests of feathers on their heads. Birds in the flowerpecker family have dark, glossy plumage, or feathering, on their backs and lighter plumage underneath. In the dull-colored species, the males and females are alike, while the males in other species have patches of bright colors.
The faint, metallic notes, high-pitched twitterings, and rapidly changing notes of the flowerpecker echo through the trees. Small flocks form outside of the breeding season, and birds may gather in large flocks at feeding sites. The birds generally nest in pairs. Some species build open, cup-shaped nests, while others construct nests which hang down below the branches and have side entrances.
Female flowerpeckers lay one to three eggs, which may or may not have brown blotches on their white surfaces. After being carefully incubated for 12 days, the young hatch from their shells. They remain in the nest for 15 days, a time called nestling, during which they are fed and protected. After that time, they are ready to fly. It is not known how long they live or what dangers they face in the wild.
Flowerpeckers are fond of picking the fruit from a variety of berry-bearing shrubs, trees, and vines. For this reason they are also known as berrypeckers. They are also sometimes referred to as mistletoe birds because of the variety of mistletoe berries the eat. The birds swallow the berries whole but do not digest the seeds. They may wipe the seeds from their bills onto trees, where they are then able to grow again. Other kinds of seeds pass through and out of the birds' systems. In this way, many seeds are spread about and may grow again in other places. Flowerpeckers also eat insects and spiders, many of which they pick from flowers. They may also eat nectar.
While many populations of flowerpecker species are stable, but some are not. According to the Interantional Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, the Cebu flowerpecker is listed as Critically Endangered (CR), the scarlet-collared flowerpecker is listed as Vulnerable (V), and the white-throated flowerpecker, brown-backed flowerpecker, and scarlet-breasted flowerpecker are listed as Near Threatened (NT). Habitat loss is the family's greatest threat.
Flowerpecker species include:
Crested berrypecker Paramythia montium
Mistletoe bird Dicaeum hirundinaceum
Scarlet-backed flowerpecker Dicaeum cruentatum
Bibliography
“Bird Dicaeidae - Flowerpeckers.” Fat Birder, 29 Apr. 2021, fatbirder.com/ornithology/dicaeidae-flowerpeckers/. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
BirdLife International. “Cebu Flowerpecker.” The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, 5 Aug. 2020, www.iucnredlist.org/species/22717507/181042707. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
“Dicaeidae - Flowerpeckers.” Wildlife Journal Junior, New Hampshire PBS, nhpbs.org/wild/Dicaeidae.asp. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.