Phylidonyris niger
Silhouette: Rachael Joakim · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The white-cheeked honeyeater (Phylidonyris niger) is a species of honeyeater that inhabits the east coast and the south-west corner of Australia. It has a large white patch on its cheek, brown eyes, and a yellow panel on its wing.
The white-cheeked honeyeater was formally described by the German naturalist Johann Matthäus Bechstein in 1811. He placed it with the tree creepers in the genus Certhia and coined the binomial name Certhia nigra. His account was based on "L'Héorotaire noir" that had been described and illustrated in 1802 by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot. Bechstein specified the type locality as "Neuholland", now Sydney, New South Wales. The white-cheeked honeyeater is now one of three species placed in the genus Phylidonyris that was introduced in 1830 by René Lesson. The generic name Phylidonyris combines the term Phylédon or Philédon, used by the French naturalist Georges Cuvier in 1817 for the friarbirds (now placed in the genus Philemon), with Cinnyris (Cuvier, 1816) for the sunbirds; the specific epithet derives from Latin niger 'black'.
Two subspecies are recognised: Phylidonyris niger niger in eastern Australia; and P. n. gouldii (Schlegel... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Booderee National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Noosa National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adelaide Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a White-cheeked Honeyeater sighting in Royal National Park on a given day, based on 38 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 129th most-seen of the 178 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a White-cheeked Honeyeater in Royal National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-cheeked 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.
4th of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate White-cheeked Honeyeater sightings, Royal National Park ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Booderee National Park (Australia, about 20%), Noosa National Park (Australia, about 20%) and Blue Mountains National Park (Australia, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-cheeked Honeyeater is recorded against all the birds logged in Royal National Park (38 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.
