Our earlier post on a spiderhunter stealing nectar from a durian (Durio zibethinus) flower did not have an image accompanying it LINK. Also, the species of spiderhunter was not identified.
Now, Malaysian birder Daisy O’Neill has generously shared her image of the Yellow-eared Spiderhunter (Arachnothera chrysogenys) taking nectar from a durian flower. Unless I am mistaken, this is a new record.
We appreciate what Daisy has done and encourage others to share their images and observations. Who knows, you may be having new bird records buried in your hard disk and unless you share them with others, they will one day be lost to ornithology – when someone delete them for ever.
Daisy O’Neill
Penang, Malaysia
December 2011
Bird Ecology Study Group Animals that visit the durian tree, Durio zibethinus
[…] Nectarivorous bats, mainly Cave Nectar Bats (Eonycteris spelaea), visit the flowers at night for the nectar and in the process assist in their pollination (Tomlinson, 1999). Night flying moths are also suspected of assisting in pollination. Little Spiderhunter (Arachnothera longirostra) has also been seen taking nectar from the flower, but from the side, thus not contributing to pollinating LINK. But not so the Yellow-eared Spiderhunter (Arachnothera chrysogenys) LINK. […]