Remarks
A taxonomic nightmare: almost certainly not a species in its own right, it may be, at best, a subspecies of the Yellow-throated Miner (Manorina flavigula). The taxon has been subsumed into the greater population of Yellow-throated Miner (Manorina flavigula), and will probably not be seen in the wild again. SA AFL 04/04
Nest
A loose untidy bowl composed of grass and fine twigs, lined with fine grass and other soft materials, placed in a mallee eucalypt up to 7 or 8 m above the ground.
Eggs (Guide)
Usually 3 or 4; pink to red-buff with specks or blotches of red or purple-brown, mostly at the larger end; oval; about 26 x 18 mm.
Subspecies
No subspecies.
Manorina flavigula (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) has been split into Yellow-throated Miner (Manorina flavigula) and Black-eared Miner (Manorina melanotis) following Christidis and Boles (1994).
Species separation from Yellow-throated Miner (Manorina flavigula) a matter of some contention. The two species intergrade extensively through the range of Black-eared Miner (Manorina melanotis) in the lower western Murray - Darling Basin of SA and Vic.
Similar Species
Yellow-throated Miner (Manorina flavigula) which has lighter grey upperparts, chin, throat and breast, whitish uppertail coverts, white tip to the tail, black face mask peters out on anterior lores.
Compare Images
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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BirdLife International Species Factsheet