Scarlet Honeyeater

Myzomela sanguinolenta (11 cm)

The male Scarlet Honeyeater has a brilliant scarlet head, breast, back and rump while the female is mostly grey-brown with a red wash on the throat. Mainly a summer breeding visitor to our corner of Victoria, most of them migrate north in winter.

Frequenting the outer foliage of trees and shrubs in forest and woodland areas, it also visits well-vegetated gardens.

It feeds on nectar, especially of eucalypts, but also takes insects. Its song is a descending tinkling trill, its nest a neat cup concealed in the outer foliage of a tree or bush.