Cissomela pectoralis
Silhouette: Rachael Joakim · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The banded honeyeater (Cissomela pectoralis) is a species of honeyeater in the family Meliphagidae with a characteristic narrow black band across its white underparts. It is endemic to tropical northern Australia. The scientific name for the banded honeyeater is Cissomela pectoralis (Gould, 1841). The holotype was Holotype ANSP 18224 male, Australia: north coast, held in the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, Philadelphia.
The banded honeyeater was previously placed in the genus Certhionyx, but was moved to the monotypic genus Cissomela after a molecular phylogenetic analysis, published in 2011, showed that the original genus was polyphyletic.
The genus name Cissomela (Bonaparte, 1854) means "honey magpie" from the Greek kissa for 'magpie', thus referring to the black and white colouring, and mela meaning 'honey' for its feeding habits. The specific epithet pectoralis comes from the Latin pectoris for 'breast', referring to the distinctive banded breast of this bird.
The banded honeyeater is a small, pied honeyeater with a distinctive black breast band across white underparts. It has a black back, tail and head, a long... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nitmiluk National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Banded Honeyeater sighting in Nitmiluk National Park on a given day, based on 49 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 50th most-seen of the 103 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Banded Honeyeater in Nitmiluk National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January, April–May and October, the lowest months. That is one of Nitmiluk National Park's driest months, with almost no rain against 270 mm in January.
Between 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Banded Honeyeater sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Banded Honeyeater sightings, Nitmiluk National Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Kakadu National Park (Australia, under 5%).
Same family: Meliphagidae
The closest relatives of the Banded Honeyeater that you can see in Nitmiluk National Park (family Meliphagidae, Honeyeaters) are Brown Honeyeater (about 60%), White-throated Honeyeater (about 60%) and White-gaped Honeyeater (about 60%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Banded Honeyeater is recorded against all the birds logged in Nitmiluk National Park (49 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
