- Spinebill
Taxobox
name = Spinebill
regnum =Animal ia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Aves
ordo =Passeriformes
familia = Meliphagidae
genus = "Acanthorhynchus"
genus_authority = Gould, 1837
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision =
*"Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris"
- Eastern Spinebill
*"Acanthorhynchus superciliosus" -
Western SpinebillSpinebill is name given to two members of the
Honeyeater family, both in the genus "Acanthorhynchus", the name of which means literally "spine bill". They are around 15 centimetres in length, and are coloured black, white and chestnut, with a long, downcurved bill. They are native toAustralia , with one species in the east and one in the west. They feed on nectar as well as insects, and live mainly in forests, gardens, and other shrubbery habitat.A molecular study has shown that the two spinebills are a sister grouping to all other honeyeaters, that is, they diverged earlier than all other species. [Driskell, A.C., Christidis, L (2004) Phylogeny and evolution of the Australo-Papuanhoneyeaters (Passeriformes, Meliphagidae) "Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution" 31 943–960]
References
External links
[http://birdsinbackyards.net/finder/display.cfm?id=109 Birds in Backyards: The Eastern Spinebill] [http://www.aviceda.org/abid/birdimages.php?action=birdspecies&fid=63&bid=960 The Eastern Spinebill in the Australian Birds Image Database]
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