Silvereye
Encyclopedia
The Silvereye or Wax-eye (Zosterops lateralis) is a very small passerine
bird native to Australia
, New Zealand
and the south-west Pacific islands of Lord Howe
, New Caledonia
, Loyalty Islands
, Vanuatu
, and Fiji
. It is common to abundant throughout the relatively fertile south-west and south-east parts of Australia (including Tasmania
and the Bass Strait
islands), and through the well-watered coastal zone of tropical Queensland
, including Cape York Peninsula
. In Australia and New Zealand its common name
is sometimes shortened to White-eye, but this name is more commonly used to refer to all members of the genus Zosterops
, or the entire family Zosteropidae.
:
Silvereyes breed in spring and early summer (mainly between September and December), making a tiny cup of grass, moss, hair, spiderweb, and thistledown, suspended from a small tree or shrub, and laying 2 to 4 pale blue eggs. Two broods may be raised during this, the breeding season. Once the young have fledged, Silvereyes gather into flocks and many migrate
north during late summer, making their way north along the coast and ranges, foraging busily during the day with much calling and quick movement through the shrubbery, then flying long distances into the night.
Most of the Tasmanian population crosses Bass Strait (an astonishing feat for 12 cm birds weighing only a few grams) and disperses into Victoria, New South Wales
, and south-eastern Queensland
. The populations of these areas tend to head further north; while the northern-most birds remain resident all year round. In New Zealand, the Silvereye was first recorded in 1832. It arrived in greater numbers in 1856, and it is assumed that a migrating flock was swept eastwards by a storm. However, it is also possible that they followed a ship across the Tasman as other birds sometimes do, or were accidentally transported aboard a ship. Since there is no evidence that it was artificially introduced
into New Zealand, it is somewhat ambiguously classified as a native species there and is consequently protected. Its Māori
name, Tauhou, means "stranger" or more literally, "new arrival".
Silvereyes are omnivorous but have a particular fondness for fruit. Some orchardists, grape growers, and home gardeners regard them as a serious pest particularly as, being so small, they simply ignore bird nets, popping in and out through the netting at will. They destroy a wide range of fruit species, including amongst others, apples, citrus, feijoas, figs, grapes, pears and persimmons.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird native to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and the south-west Pacific islands of Lord Howe
Lord Howe Island
Lord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, Loyalty Islands
Loyalty Islands
The Loyalty Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific. They are part of the French territory of New Caledonia, whose mainland is away. They form the Loyalty Islands Province , one of the three provinces of New Caledonia...
, Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
, and Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
. It is common to abundant throughout the relatively fertile south-west and south-east parts of Australia (including Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
and the Bass Strait
Bass Strait
Bass Strait is a sea strait separating Tasmania from the south of the Australian mainland, specifically the state of Victoria.-Extent:The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Bass Strait as follows:...
islands), and through the well-watered coastal zone of tropical Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, including Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula is a large remote peninsula located in Far North Queensland at the tip of the state of Queensland, Australia, the largest unspoilt wilderness in northern Australia and one of the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth...
. In Australia and New Zealand its common name
Common name
A common name of a taxon or organism is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism...
is sometimes shortened to White-eye, but this name is more commonly used to refer to all members of the genus Zosterops
Zosterops
Zosterops is a genus of birds containing the typical white-eyes. They are traditionally placed in the white-eye family, Zosteropidae, which may actually be a part of the Timaliidae, however...
, or the entire family Zosteropidae.
Taxonomy
There are 16 subspeciesSubspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
:
- Z. l. chlorocephalus A. J. Campbell & S. A. White, 1910 (Capricorn SilvereyeCapricorn SilvereyeThe Capricorn Silvereye , also known as the Capricorn White-eye or Green-headed White-eye, is a small greenish bird in the Zosteropidae or White-eye family...
)– Capricorn and Bunker GroupCapricorn and Bunker GroupThe islands and reefs of the Capricorn and Bunker Group are situated astride the Tropic of Capricorn at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef, approximately 80 kilometres east of Gladstone, which is situated on the central coast of Queensland....
, central QueenslandQueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... - Z. l. chloronotus Gould, 1841 (Western SilvereyeWestern SilvereyeThe Western Silvereye is a small greenish bird in the Zosteropidae or White-eye family. It is a subspecies of the Silvereye that occurs in Western Australia and South Australia. It is sometimes called the White-eye or Greenie...
) – south-west Western AustraliaWestern AustraliaWestern Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
from CarnarvonCarnarvon, Western AustraliaCarnarvon is a coastal town situated approximately 900 kilometres north of Perth, Western Australia. It lies at the mouth of the Gascoyne River on the Indian Ocean. The popular Shark Bay world heritage area lies to the south of the town and the Ningaloo Reef lies to the north...
southwards coastally and subcoastally to South AustraliaSouth AustraliaSouth Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
at the head of the Great Australian BightGreat Australian BightThe Great Australian Bight is a large bight, or open bay, off the central and western portions of the southern coastline of mainland Australia.-Extent:... - Z. l. cornwalli Mathews, 1912 – east-central and south-east Queensland to north-east New South WalesNew South WalesNew South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
- Z. l. flaviceps Peale, 1848 – FijiFijiFiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
- Z. l. griseonota G. R. Gray, 1859 – New CaledoniaNew CaledoniaNew Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
- Z. l. lateralis (Latham, 1801) – Flinders IslandFlinders IslandFlinders Island may refer to:In Australia:* Flinders Island , in the Furneaux Group, is the largest and best known* Flinders Island * Flinders Island , in the Investigator Group* Flinders Island...
, TasmaniaTasmaniaTasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
; Norfolk IslandNorfolk IslandNorfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...
; New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and Chatham IslandsChatham IslandsThe Chatham Islands are an archipelago and New Zealand territory in the Pacific Ocean consisting of about ten islands within a radius, the largest of which are Chatham Island and Pitt Island. Their name in the indigenous language, Moriori, means Misty Sun...
; also a non-breeding migrant to continental south-eastern Australia - Z. l. melanops G. R. Gray, 1860 – LifouLifouLifou is a commune in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia in the Pacific Ocean.-Geography:Lifou is made up of Lifou Island, the largest and most heavily populated of the Loyalty Islands, its smaller neighbour Tiga Island, and several uninhabited islets in between these two...
, Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia - Z. l. nigrescens F. Sarasin, 1913 – Loyalty IslandsLoyalty IslandsThe Loyalty Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific. They are part of the French territory of New Caledonia, whose mainland is away. They form the Loyalty Islands Province , one of the three provinces of New Caledonia...
, New Caledonia - Z. l. ochrochrous Schodde & Mason, 1999 – King Island, Tasmania
- Z. l. pinarochrous Schodde & Mason, 1999 – south-east South Australia, south-west New South Wales and western Victoria
- Z. l. tephropleurus Gould, 1855 (Lord Howe SilvereyeLord Howe SilvereyeThe Lord Howe Silvereye , also known as the Lord Howe White-eye, Lord Howe Island White-eye or, locally, as the “Little Grinnell”, is a small bird in the white-eye family, Zosteropidae. It is a subspecies of the Silvereye , though sometimes considered a full species...
) – Lord Howe IslandLord Howe IslandLord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of... - Z. l. tropicus Mees, 1969 – Torres IslandsTorres IslandsThe Torres Islands are in the Torba Province of Vanuatu, the northernmost island group in the country. The chain of islands that make up this micro-archipelago straddle the broader cultural boundary that distinguishes Island Melanesia from several Polynesian outliers located in the neighbouring...
and Banks IslandsBanks IslandsThe Banks Islands are a group of islands in northern Vanuatu.Together with the Torres Islands to the northwest, they make up the northernmost province of Torba. The group lies about north of Maewo, and includes Gaua and Vanua Lava, two of the 13 largest islands in Vanuatu...
(except Mota Lava), and MaloMalo IslandMalo is an island in Vanuatu, off the southern coast of the larger Espiritu Santo in Sanma Province. It has a circumference of and an area of . In 1979 the island had a population of 2,312. In 1999, the population numbered about 3000...
and Espíritu SantoEspiritu SantoEspiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of . It belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu....
, north-west VanuatuVanuatuVanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was... - Z. l. valuensis Murphy & Mathews, 1929 – Mota LavaMota LavaMota Lava or Motalava is the fourth largest island in the Banks Islands of Vanuatu, after Gaua, Vanua Lava and Ureparapara, with an area of . It is the largest and highest of the eastern chain of islands...
, Banks Islands, Vanuatu - Z. l. vatensis Tristram, 1879 – central and southern Vanuatu
- Z. l. vegetus E. J. O. Hartert, 1899 – north-east Queensland
- Z. l. westernensis (Quoy & Gaimard, 1830) – south-east New South Wales to eastern Victoria
Behaviour
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
north during late summer, making their way north along the coast and ranges, foraging busily during the day with much calling and quick movement through the shrubbery, then flying long distances into the night.
Most of the Tasmanian population crosses Bass Strait (an astonishing feat for 12 cm birds weighing only a few grams) and disperses into Victoria, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, and south-eastern Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
. The populations of these areas tend to head further north; while the northern-most birds remain resident all year round. In New Zealand, the Silvereye was first recorded in 1832. It arrived in greater numbers in 1856, and it is assumed that a migrating flock was swept eastwards by a storm. However, it is also possible that they followed a ship across the Tasman as other birds sometimes do, or were accidentally transported aboard a ship. Since there is no evidence that it was artificially introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
into New Zealand, it is somewhat ambiguously classified as a native species there and is consequently protected. Its Māori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
name, Tauhou, means "stranger" or more literally, "new arrival".
Silvereyes are omnivorous but have a particular fondness for fruit. Some orchardists, grape growers, and home gardeners regard them as a serious pest particularly as, being so small, they simply ignore bird nets, popping in and out through the netting at will. They destroy a wide range of fruit species, including amongst others, apples, citrus, feijoas, figs, grapes, pears and persimmons.
External links
- Silvereye videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection.