HONEYGUIDES: Indicatoridae

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Honeyguides are fairly small tropical birds that are related to woodpeckers and barbets. Their most visible features are the dark stripe on the cheeks (on some species) and the white on the outer tail feathers (on all species). They have drab-colored plumage (feathers) of olive-greens, grays, browns, black, and white, with some signs of yellow, depending on the species. Males and females look alike with respect to their plumage, except for three species. Two species have yellow wing patches, and one species has orange on the head and rump. Honeyguides have a short and sturdy bill (with most species having a raised rim on the nostrils to prevent liquid foods from entering), a long tail with very short feathers, which is marked with white bars and tipped in a dark color, and strong legs with strong zygodactyl (zye-guh-DACK-tuhl) toes (two toes [second and third] pointing forward and two toes [first and fourth] facing backward). They have long and hooked claws and long, narrow, and pointed wings. They also have very good senses of sight, sound, and smell. Adults are 4 to 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters) long and weigh between 0.4 and 1.9 ounces (10 and 55 grams).

GEOGRAPHIC RANGE

Honeyguides are found in the temperate (mild) and tropical parts of Africa south of the Sahara. In addition, two species are found along the southern foothills of the Himalayas and in Southeast Asia.

HABITAT

Honeyguides live in dense primary forests, secondary forests, gallery forests in semiarid country, open woodlands and scrublands that include a mix of broadleaved trees, shrubs, and grassland. Generally, darker-colored species tend to live in broadleaved forests, while paler ones live in drier woodlands. They live from sea level to near the top of trees in mountainous areas.

DIET

Their diet is mostly made up of beeswax, but the birds also eat insects, ants, spiders, bee larvae (LAR-vee; active immature insects), waxworms, termites, flies, and caterpillars. They sometimes eat fruits and other plant matter. All honeyguides eat live prey, animals they hunt for food, by catching it while in the air. The bill is adapted to feeding on wax and probing for insects in tree bark. They feed on beeswax by flying up to a bee nest, gripping the tree's surface alongside the outer comb, and biting off and swallowing pieces of wax. The body of honeyguides is strong enough to be protected from most bee stings, but they can be killed if enough bees attack. A few species lead animals or humans to honey sources by flying close to them and calling "churr-churr-churr-churr" or "tirr-tirr-tirr-tirr" in order to get them to open up the food source.

BEHAVIOR AND REPRODUCTION

The behavior of honeyguides makes them one of the most interesting birds to watch, especially the way they eat beeswax and actually lead other animals to wax sources. They are also aggressive birds in that they harass other birds and mob around wax sources. They are solitary birds most of the time, although when foraging for food, dozens of honeyguides may show up at a wax source. Many species will fly around human settlements (such as campgrounds) hoping to find food.

All honeyguides sing, except for one species. Their singing consists of a wide variety of sounds that are sung for particular situations. While singing, the birds also arch their necks, fluff out rump feathers (and other feathers), and quiver the tail. The rustling sound of waving wings is often heard with aggression or mating sounds. White tail bars are often displayed while the birds fly. They have strong wings that allow them to do complicated maneuvers in the air. For courtship, males sing and make aerial displays directed toward females.

All honeyguides are brood parasites, meaning that females lay fertile eggs among the eggs of other bird species in order for the nesting birds to incubate their eggs. Honeyguides do not build nests and are unable to raise their own young. Most female honeyguides lay about six eggs, but will leave only one or two eggs per nest. The female honeyguide invades a nest while the parents are gone, deposits a white thick-shelled egg (blue in one species), sometimes punctures or removes a host's egg, and leaves within seconds. All host nests are in cavities, such as in trees, in the ground, in termite mounds, or in ant nests. The most frequently used host birds are barbets, tinkerbirds, kingfishers, bee-eaters, hoopoes, and woodpeckers. When honeyguides are born, they break host eggs that have not hatched or kill host hatchlings with their hooked bills and claws. Their breeding season is tied to the breeding season of their host species. The incubation period (time to sit on eggs before hatching) is twelve to thirteen days and the nestling period (time to take care of young unable to leave nest) is thirty-eight to forty days.

HONEYGUIDES AND PEOPLE

Some species of honeyguides guide humans to honey sources.

CONSERVATION STATUS

No species are currently listed as Threatened by the World Conservation Union (IUCN). Three species, the Malaysian honeyguide, yellow-rumped honeyguide, and dwarf honeyguide, are listed as Near Threatened, in danger of becoming threatened. Most species in Africa and Asia are threatened by deforestation.

MALAYSIAN HONEYGUIDE (Indicator archipelagicus): SPECIES ACCOUNTS

Physical characteristics: Malaysian honeyguides have brownish gray plumage with small, bright yellow shoulder patches, dark olive-brown upperparts, a light gray breast, and red eyes. They have a brown pointed bill, white under parts, and black legs and feet. Females do not have the yellow shoulder patch. Adults are about 2.5 inches (16 centimeters) long and weigh between 0.8 and 1.4 ounces (23.0 and 38.5 grams).

Geographic range: These honeyguides live in the Malaysian Peninsula, Sumatra, and Borneo.

Habitat: Malaysian honeyguides inhabit tropical rainforests and broadleaved, lowland evergreen forests from sea level to 3,280 feet (1,000 meters) in elevation. They also are found in open country, secondary forests, and in hill-slope forests.

Diet: They eat beeswax, bee larvae, bees, and other insects.

Behavior and reproduction: Malaysian honeyguides call out with harsh, cat-like "miaow," followed by a churring "miaow-krruuu" or "miao-miao-krruuu," which rises in pitch. Males that are mating with females will sing. Little else is known about their reproduction behavior except that they are thought to be brood parasites like other honeyguides. Breeding seasons are believed to occur from February to May in Malaya, during August in Thailand, May into June in Sumatra, and from January into March in Borneo.

Malaysian honeyguides and people: There is no known significant relationship between people and Malaysian honeyguides.

Conservation status: Malaysian honeyguides are listed as Near Threatened due to deforestation. ∎

LYRE-TAILED HONEYGUIDE (Melichneutes robustus): SPECIES ACCOUNTS

Physical characteristics: Dull-colored lyre-tailed honeyguides have a long, lyre-shaped tail (U-shaped), and two middle pairs of retrices (RET-rihs-uhs) paired flight feathers of the tail, which extend from the tail edges) that are curved outward at distal ends (away from the point of attachment), while the outermost retrices are narrow and short. The birds also have a white undersurface about the tail (which is shown while in flight), olive-green upperparts, and whitish under parts. Males and females look different with respect to their plumage (unlike most honeyguides whose sexes look alike). Females show some gray streaks on the rear underbelly, and their tail is not as large as the male, but has the same shape. Adults are about 6 inches (17 centimeters) long and weigh between 1.7 and 2.2 ounces (47.0 and 61.5 grams).

Geographic range: They are found in two primary locations in western Africa: one location that includes Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the Ivory Coast, and the other location that includes a larger area around Cameroon.

Habitat: Lyre-tailed honeyguides are located in lowland tropical rainforests, primary forests and their edges, secondary forests, and plantations.

Diet: They eat beeswax, bee larvae, termites, insects, spiders, and fig fruits.

Behavior and reproduction: Lyre-tailed honeyguides are not believed to migrate. The mating display of lyre-tailed honeyguides is very interesting. Males fly around while singing several "pee-pee" notes, which go into "ve-bek, ve-vek." They then go into a rapid and steep dive with their tail feathers spread out. These feathers brush against the wind to make a "kwa-ba kwa-ba" series of sounds. Males may also fly up and down in spiral movements.

Lyre-tailed honeyguides and people: There is no known significant relationship between people and lyre-tailed honeyguides.

Conservation status: Lyre-tailed honeyguides are not currently threatened. ∎

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Books:

del Hoyo, Josep, et al., eds. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, 1992.

Dickinson, Edward C., ed. The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World, 3rd ed. Princeton, NJ and Oxford, U.K.: Princeton University Press, 2003.

Forshaw, Joseph, ed. Encyclopedia of Birds, 2nd ed. San Diego, CA: Academic Press, 1998.

Harrison, Colin James Oliver. Birds of the World. London and New York: Dorling Kindersley, 1993.

Perrins, Christopher M., and Alex L.A. Middleton, eds. The Encyclopedia of Birds. New York: Facts on File, 1985.

Web sites:

Creagrus at Monterey Bay. "Honeyguides: Indicatoridae." http://www.montereybay.com/creagrus/honeyguides.html (accessed on July 13, 2004).