Pied Honeyeater

The pied honeyeater (Certhionyx variegatus) is a species of bird in the family of honeyeaters Meliphagidae and the sole species in the genus Certhionyx (Christidis & Boles 2008). This species is also known as the black and white honeyeater or western pied honeyeater. It is endemic to Australia and is listed as a vulnerable species under Schedule 2 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 (NSW). == Taxonomy == In 1999, taxonomists had placed pied honeyeater (Certhionyx variegatus), banded honeyeater (Cissomela pectoralis) and black honeyeater (Sugomel nigrum) in the genus Certhionyx; however, revised DNA analysis indicates that these species are not closely related. Christidis and Boles placed the pied honeyeater in the clade Acanthagenys in its own monotypic genus. Genetic analysis indicates the pied honeyeater is the earliest offshoot of a lineage that gave rise to the tui and New Zealand bellbird of New Zealand, and plain honeyeater and marbled honeyeater of New Guinea. == Description == The pied honeyeater has a long curved bill and a small pale-blue patch of bare skin below the eye which is semicircular in males and arc-shaped in females and juveniles. Males are black and white, having a black head, neck and upper parts…