Noisy Miner

Manorina melanocephala

Honeyeaters · Passeriformes · Common

The Noisy Miner (Manorina melanocephala) is a common honeyeater found only in Australia, weighing about 60 g. The noisy miner is a bird in the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae, and is endemic to eastern and southeastern Australia.

Least ConcernCommonEndemicEats omnivorewoodlandcup nest60 g

About the Noisy Miner

The noisy miner is a bird in the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae, and is endemic to eastern and southeastern Australia. This miner is a grey bird, with a black head, orange-yellow beak and feet, a distinctive yellow patch behind the eye, and white tips on the tail feathers. The Tasmanian subspecies has a more intense yellow panel in the wing, and a broader white tip to the tail. Males, females and juveniles are similar in appearance, though young birds are a brownish-grey. As the common name suggests, the noisy miner is a vocal species with a large range of songs, calls, scoldings and alarms, and almost constant vocalisations, particularly from young birds. One of four species in the genus…

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

How to identify it

The noisy miner is a large honeyeater, 24–28 centimetres (9.4–11.0 in) in length, with a wingspan of 36–45 centimetres (14–18 in), and weighing 70–80 grams (2.5–2.8 oz). Voice: As the common name suggests, the noisy miner is an unusually vocal species. Previously known as the garrulous honeyeater, it has a large and varied repertoire of songs, calls, scoldings, and alarms. Most are loud and penetrating, and consist of harsh single notes.

What the Noisy Miner sounds like

Recording: James Ray · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto

Where it lives

When to see it

The Noisy Miner can be seen all year round, with peak activity in October. It is a resident species across most of its range.

Easily confused with

Quick questions

How do you identify a Noisy Miner?
The noisy miner is a large honeyeater, 24–28 centimetres (9.4–11.0 in) in length, with a wingspan of 36–45 centimetres (14–18 in), and weighing 70–80 grams (2.5–2.8 oz). Full identification notes are on this page.
How big is a Noisy Miner?
The Noisy Miner is a medium sized bird weighing about 60 g.
Where can you see a Noisy Miner?
The Noisy Miner is endemic to Australia, which is the only country where it occurs.
What does a Noisy Miner sound like?
You can listen to a field recording of the Noisy Miner on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
What birds look similar to a Noisy Miner?
The Noisy Miner is most easily confused with the Yellow-throated Miner, the Bell Miner and the Black-eared Miner.
Is the Noisy Miner endangered?
The Noisy Miner is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Learn the Noisy Miner for real

BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.

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