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.