Dicaeum hirundinaceum
Silhouette: Rachael Joakim · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The mistletoebird (Dicaeum hirundinaceum), also known as the mistletoe flowerpecker, is a species of flowerpecker native to most of Australia (though absent from Tasmania and the driest desert areas) and also to the eastern Maluku Islands of Indonesia in the Arafura Sea between Australia and New Guinea. The mistletoebird eats mainly the berries of the parasitic mistletoe and is a vector for the spread of the mistletoe's seeds through its digestive system.
The mistletoebird is one of 54 species of the flowerpecker family Dicaeidae. The flowerpeckers are considered to be nearest in avian evolutionary relationship to the sunbird family Nectariniidae. Both the flowerpeckers and sunbirds are thought to be early offshoots of the early passeroid radiation that occurred 20-30 million years ago. The sunbirds are found mainly in Africa and Asia and the flowerpeckers throughout Asia. The mistletoebird is a geologically recent arrival into Australia from South-East Asia. It is thought to have started colonizing Australia from about two million years ago.
The mistletoebird is a mistletoe-feeding specialist and mistletoe-feeding specialists have evolved independently... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Litchfield National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Nitmiluk National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Noosa National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Flinders Ranges National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Cape Range | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Ningaloo Marine Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 11 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Grampians National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 13 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 14 | Great Otway National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 15 | Kosciuszko National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 16 | Hattah-Kulkyne National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 17 | Wilsons Promontory National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 18 | Booderee National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 19 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alice Springs Desert Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Mistletoebird sighting in Melbourne on a given day, based on 1,115 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 93rd most-seen of the 236 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April–May and December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Mistletoebird in Melbourne on a given day, against under 5% in January–March and June–November, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mistletoebird sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 4
Of the 4 cities where we can rate Mistletoebird sightings, Melbourne ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Brisbane (Australia, about 20%) and Perth (Australia, under 5%).
Same order: Passeriformes
The closest relatives of the Mistletoebird that you can see in Melbourne (order Passeriformes, Perching Birds) are Australian Magpie (about 90%), Noisy Miner (about 80%) and Little Raven (about 80%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mistletoebird is recorded against all the birds logged in Melbourne (1,115 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
