The red-capped flowerpecker (''Dicaeum geelvinkianum'') is a small

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...

bird endemic to, and widespread within,

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

and adjacent islands. It has recently been split from the olive-crowned flowerpecker ''Dicaeum pectorale''.

Identification

A common but inconspicuous tiny bird with short bill and tail, red cap, rump and, in the male, red spot on the breast.

Habitat

Forest and woodland, including secondary growth and mangroves.

Food

Small fruits, especially

mistletoe Mistletoe is the common name for obligate hemiparasitic plants in the order Santalales. They are attached to their host tree or shrub by a structure called the haustorium, through which they extract water and nutrients from the host plant ...

, insects and spiders.

References

* BirdLife International (2006) Species factsheet: ''Dicaeum geelvinkianum''. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 6/12/2006 * Coates, Brian J. ''The Birds of Papua New Guinea. Vol.II.'' Dove Publications: Queensland.

External links

Image at ADW
red-capped flowerpecker Birds of New Guinea red-capped flowerpecker {{Dicaeidae-stub