Presence and breeding of the Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater in central New South Wales

The seasonal presence and breeding of the Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater Acanthagenys rufogularis, a nomadic frugivorous bird distributed across inland Australia, are documented and contrasted for three nearby but floristically distinct sites in central New South Wales during the period January 1986-January 2015. Eucalypt blossom at two of the sites (Charcoal Tank and Holy Camp) provided an autumn resource to which the Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater responded with influxes, but these sites supported limited breeding of this species, and only in higher-rainfall periods. In contrast, the high density of Grey Mistletoe Amyema quandang parasitising Weeping Myall Acacia pendula at the third study site (Battery Hill) provided a stable resource supporting breeding resident Spiny-cheeked Honeyeaters in a lower-rainfall year.