Regent honeyeater (Anthochaera phrygia).
Image: Krigore, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
At a glance
- IUCN category
- CR · Critically Endangered
- Animal group
- Birds
- Population trend
- Decreasing
- FaunaHub record reviewed
- Checked against IUCN
- Matches source — IUCN's 2018 global assessment of Anthochaera phrygia says Critically EndangeredChecked 2026-10-09 against IUCN's Red List export published 2026-07-28 · assessment
Conservation overview
The regent honeyeater is a striking black-and-yellow songbird of south-eastern Australia. It is assessed as Critically Endangered.
It feeds on nectar from flowering eucalypts and was once far more common.
Range & habitat
South-eastern Australia.
Major threats
Threats below are drawn from the authoritative sources listed on this page. For the current, complete assessment, see the IUCN Red List.
- Loss of woodland habitat
- A small, scattered population
- Loss of song culture as numbers fall
Why it matters
A nectar-feeding bird whose decline has become so severe that young males are reportedly losing their song culture, the regent honeyeater is a stark symbol of Australia's woodland bird crisis.
Gallery
Regent honeyeater (Anthochaera phrygia), Australia.
Image: Derek Keats from Johannesburg, South Africa, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Sources
Sources for Regent Honeyeater
- IUCN Red List — look up Regent Honeyeater (authoritative status)
- BirdLife International