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Orange-bellied Flowerpecker eating Indian cherry

on 10th September 2007

Yes, how does an Orange-bellied Flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonestigma) tackles the fruits of the Indian cherry tree (Muntingia calabura)?

In an earlier post, KC Tsang gave an account of how this flowerpecker ate the fruits of the Indian cherry tree. The adult male pierced the partially ripe fruit with his lower mandible and with the help of the upper, compressed the fruit to get at the sweet pulp. A recent observation, complete with photographic evidence by Chan Yoke Meng, documents another method of feeding on the same fruit.

This was once a very common tree around the urban environment, spread far and wide by birds. Because birds flock to the fruiting tree, they leave a mess below that needs to be cleaned in a Singapore where labour was then becoming expensive. The tree is now not that common, found mostly in rural areas. The fruit is a small round berry of about 12 mm diameter, with numerous tiny seeds embedded in a soft, sweet pulp.

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The sequence of the bird handling the fruit is shown above. It first picked the fruit by pulling it from the stalk. Then on a nearby perch it started to squeeze it with the stalk end towards the mouth. Because of the tear at that end of the fruit, the content was easily squeezed into the bird‘s mouth.

It then turned the fruit around and squeezed it on one side, then on the other. It finally positioned the fruit so that the stalk end was directed towards its mouth. After swallowing what was left of the content, it discarded the empty fruit skin.

The entire process lasted about slightly more than a second.

Chan Yoke Meng
Singapore
September 2007

If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

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