Ever been outside when a flash of yellow has whizzed past you and you’ve thought – butterfly? Well it could in fact have been the incredibly tiny Spotted Pardalote that is only 8-10coms in size. Now that’s seriously tiny, but seriously delicate too, with a short Peep, peep call, very much in keeping with its size, to herald its presence.
It is one of Australia’s smallest birds and builds its nest in a long horizontal tunnel dug into the soil of creek banks, the embankments of railway cuttings, quarries or similar suitable sites. For something so small they are very industrious and sometimes even excavate tunnels in rabbit burrows, or potted plants in gardens.
The nest itself is spherical, made from strips of bark, and built in a chamber at the end of a narrow tunnel. Sometimes they nest in tree hollows and occasionally in artificial structures. Both parents share nest-building, incubation of the eggs and feeding of the young when they hatch.
Pardalotes are usually seen foraging in the crowns of eucalypt trees, where they pluck invertebrates, especially psillids, from the leaves.
As the Spotted Pardalote is such a tiny bird and most often to be found high in a eucalypt canopy, it is more often detected by its characteristic call. The wings, tail and head of the male are black and covered with small, distinct white spots. Males have a pale eyebrow, a yellow throat and a red rump. Females are similar but have less-distinct markings.
The Spotted Pardalote is found in eastern and southern Australia from Cooktown in Queensland through to Perth in Western Australia. It occurs in coastal areas, extending to the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in the east.
Although the Spotted Pardalote is mostly found in eucalypt forests and woodlands it can also occur in parks and gardens with well-established eucalypt canopy.
It is definitely an example of the old adage – Good things come in small packages!
Text – Birdlife Australia Photo – Phil Glowacki
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