Noisy Miner

Manorina melanocephala

Family: Meliphagidae (Honeyeaters, 74 species in Australia)
Size: 24-28 cm
Distribution: Within about 1000 km of the east coast of Australia, except the northern tip of QLD. Almost all of VIC and most of TAS. A small part of southeastern SA.
Status: Common
Habitat: Woodlands, suburbs
References: Simpson and Day, Reader's Digest

The noisy miner is a very common bird in much of the parts of Australia where it is found. It is a native to Australia unlike the common or "Indian" myna. It is loud and agressive to other birds. It is usually much more shy around people than the common myna.

The beak and feet of the noisy miner are dark yellow with a small, dark yellow patch behind the eye.

Noisy Miner - Manorina melanocephala
Photo: Lake Parramatta, NSW.

Noisy Miner - Manorina melanocephala
Photo: Watsons Bay, NSW.

Noisy Miner - Manorina melanocephala
Artwork: John Gould, 'The Birds of Australia', 1848. Original Scanned Image.

I made the drawing below as part of the Kamana Naturalist Training Program. It is not meant to be artistic or even particuluarly technically correct. The main purpose of drawing in the course is that it is a great aid to learning the identifying details of what you are drawing.

Noisy Miner - Manorina melanocephala
The above photo shows my drawing of the noisy miner from the Kamana Naturalist Training Program. High resolution (1749 x 2434)

Some Birdwatching Resources

NEW: Birds of Australia: A Photographic Guide, by Iain Campbell, Sam Woods, Nick Leseberg, Geoff Jones (Photographer).

I bought this field guide recently (June 2020). As the name suggests, it's got photographs rather than line drawings. They are very high quality, clear photos. I've got so many field guides now, they have to be really good before I buy them (I got it from a physical book shop, so I was able to look through it thoroughly before deciding whether or not to get it).

From the publisher:

Australia is home to a spectacular diversity of birdlife, from parrots and penguins to emus and vibrant passerines. Birds of Australia covers all 714 species of resident birds and regularly occurring migrants and features more than 1,100 stunning color photographs, including many photos of subspecies and plumage variations never before seen in a field guide. Detailed facing-page species accounts describe key identification features such as size, plumage, distribution, behavior, and voice. This one-of-a-kind guide also provides extensive habitat descriptions with a large number of accompanying photos. The text relies on the very latest IOC taxonomy and the distribution maps incorporate the most current mapping data, making this the most up-to-date guide to Australian birds.

Covers all 714 species of resident birds and regularly occurring migrants
Features more than 1,100 stunning color photos
Includes facing-page species accounts, habitat descriptions, and distribution maps
The ideal photographic guide for beginners and seasoned birders alike

NOTE: This is the only field guide for Australian birds that I've seen which lists the size of each bird in both centimetres and inches. So if you're much more familiar with inches than centimetres, this would be the best Australian bird field guide to get just for that reason.

Purchase from Australia (Booktopia)

Purchase from Australia (Angus & Robertson)

Purchase from Australia (The Nile)

Purchase from Australia (Fishpond)

Purchase from Amazon.com (USA Site)

Purchase from Amazon.com.au (Australian Site)

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