Yellow Honeyeater

1. Uniform lemon-yellow plumage with no streaks or wingbars

2. Short black bill and subtle olive-yellow upperparts

3. Juveniles have puffy yellow gapes at the corners of the mouth

Yellow Honeyeaters feed on nectar, insects, and some fruit, often performing acrobatic maneuvers to reach food sources. They are territorial year-round and may breed in any month with favourable conditions, sometimes raising multiple broods per year. Their shallow cup-shaped nests are typically suspended from forks in leafy trees, usually between one and eight meters above ground. The species is known for its adaptability, sometimes feeding on unconventional food sources such as sweet molasses at sugar mills.

Yellow Honeyeaters are found throughout far northern Queensland, from Townsville north to Cape York Peninsula. They inhabit a wide range of treed environments, including riparian woodlands, mangroves, parks, gardens, and the edges of rainforests, especially where paperbarks or eucalypts are flowering. These birds are most often seen foraging high in the canopy, and their distinctive, piercing calls often reveal their presence before they are spotted. Early morning is the best time to observe them, especially in flowering trees within urban parks, where they are comfortable around people.