Dicaeum keiense
The Pink-breasted Flowerpecker (Dicaeum keiense) is a minute and vibrant passerine bird, endemic to the remote islands of Eastern Indonesia. Males are strikingly adorned with dark, glossy blue-black upperparts, contrasting sharply with a brilliant, circular patch of rose-pink on the breast, a white belly, and undertail coverts, and a short, stout, dark bill. Measuring a mere 8-9 cm (3-3.5 inches) in length and weighing just 5-7 grams, it is one of the smallest avians in its range. Females, th...
This species primarily inhabits lowland and hill forests, secondary growth, and forest edges, often frequenting areas rich in fruiting and flowering trees. It is typically found at elevations ranging from sea level up to approximately 1000 meters, though most commonly below 500 meters.
Their diet consists mainly of nectar from various flowering plants, small fruits and berries (especially mistletoe berries), and small insects and spiders. They primarily forage by gleaning and probing foliage and flowers.
Pink-breasted Flowerpeckers are highly active, arboreal birds, constantly flitting through the canopy and sub-canopy in search of food. Their foraging strategy involves rapid gleaning for insects and spiders, probing flowers for nectar, and plucking small berries and fruits, with a particular fon...
The Pink-breasted Flowerpecker is an endemic resident of the Kei and Aru Islands, located in the Maluku province of Indonesia, east of New Guinea. Its distribution is quite restricted, with the Kei Islands (including Kei Besar and Kei Kecil) and the Aru Islands forming its primary known range. Hi...
Least Concern
- The Pink-breasted Flowerpecker is among the smallest bird species found in its Indonesian island habitat. - It plays a critical ecological role as a "mistletoe specialist," dispersing seeds that are vital for forest health. - Its digestive system is so efficient that mistletoe seeds pass throug...