The Yellow-faced Honeyeater, Lichenostomus chrysops, is a mid-sized bird in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. It is sometimes known as the Yellow-gaped Honeyeater. It is closely related to, and forms a superspecies with, the Varied Honeyeater and the Mangrove Honeyeater. Three subspecies are tentatively accepted. The species is partly migratory, with southern birds moving north in the austral winter.

The Yellow-faced Honeyeater inhabits the east coast of Australia from northern Queensland to the coast of South Australia. Its primary habitat is open forests and woodlands but it is also found in parks in urban areas. It will also inhabit rainforests and mangrove forests. Across its range it occurs from sea level to the subalpine zone.

It ranges in size from 15-17.5 cm. As its name suggests, it has a distinctive yellow stripe on its face, between two black stripes, and a blue eye. The appearance of the sexes is similar, but males are slightly larger and heavier. The juveniles are similar to the adults but are paler, lack the streaks above and browner rumps. The species is able to detect geomagnetic fields and uses them to navigate while migrating.

They feed on nectar, particularly of Eucalyptus and Banksia, seeds, fruits and insects and mainly forage in the foliage of trees.

The Yellow-faced Honeyeater breeds in monogamous pairs. The male establishes a territory but both parents defend it again conspecifics and other species. During the breeding season pairs may rear multiple broods. The nests, which are located close to the ground, are built by the female alone, and the female also undertakes the incubation and chick brooding alone. The clutch size varies from 1-3 eggs, and take around two weeks to hatch. Upon hatching both parents share the chick feeding duties. The chicks fledge after 13 days, and leave the parental territory after a further two weeks.

Additional Images

Yellow-faced Honeyeater feeding it's chicks

An adult yellow-faced Honeyeater