“Attracted by the familiar squeaking call, I saw this female Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker (Dicaeum cruentatum) feeding on a freshly-picked buah cherry (Muntingia calabura), and calling at the same time! At first, I wasn’t sure that the calls came from the same bird which was systematically squeezing and swallowing juice from the fruit, but the video shows the flicking tail accompanying the calls, and the bird making the same calls after the fruit was dropped when she was done feeding:
“I suppose these are contact calls, the same way birds preen and call at the same time… See Here… as there was a male Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker nearby, so those are very probably contact calls…”
Lena Chow
Singapore
11th August 2012
