YELLOW THORNBILLS IN FRED CATERSON RESERVE

Like all thornbills the Yellow Thornbill is a small insect-eating bird, and is the most yellow of the thornbill group. It is greenish-olive on the back, with white streaking on the cheeks and ears, and has pale to bright yellow underparts. There is a reddish brown tone on the chin and throat. If you have binoculars, you will easily be able to identify it.

The Yellow Thornbill is found along the eastern states of Australia from the bottom half of Queensland, through most of NSW and all of Victoria. Its distribution also extends into South Australia. It is found in a range of habitats where eucalypts are not dominant, from open forests to shrublands. It is often seen in parks and gardens, preferring more established areas over newer urban developments. It is the most common thornbill recorded in Fred Caterson Reserve.

The Yellow Thornbill feeds mainly on insects, but may sometimes eat seeds. It feeds almost exclusively in the foliage of trees, most often acacias, paperbarks, casuarinas and native pines.

Females build a rounded domed nest, with a narrow, hooded entrance near the top, out of grasses, bark and other materials, lining it with feathers, fur or soft plant down. The nest is usually in twigs of upper tree branches. 

Did you know? Breeding pairs of Yellow Thornbills may sometimes have helpers to assist them with feeding the young. 

Information provided by BirdLife Southern NSW in conjunction with BirdLife Australia's Birds in Backyards Program.