Anthochaera is a genus of birds in the honeyeater family. The species are endemic to Australia and include the little wattlebird, the red wattlebird, the western wattlebird, and the yellow wattlebird. A molecular phylogenetic study has shown that the regent honeyeater also belongs in this genus.
| Anthochaera | |
|---|---|
| |
| Red wattlebird (Anthochaera carunculata) | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Meliphagidae |
| Genus: | Anthochaera Vigors & Horsfield, 1827 |
| Type species | |
| Anthochaera carunculatus[1] Vigors & Horsfield, 1827 | |
| Species | |
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See text | |
Of the five species in the genus only the yellow wattlebird (Anthochaera paradoxa) and the red wattlebird (A. carunculata) have the wattles of their common name.[2] These are bare fleshy appendages, usually wrinkled and often brightly coloured, hanging from the cheeks, neck or throat, and presumably serving for display.
A common name for species of the genus is wattlebird, a term also used for unrelated avian species.
The genus Anthochaera was introduced in 1827 by the naturalists Nicholas Aylward Vigors and Thomas Horsfield.[3] The name is derived from the Greek anthos meaning flower or bloom and khairō meaning to enjoy.[4] The type species was designated as the little wattlebird by the German ornithologist Hans Friedrich Gadow in 1884.[5][6]
The regent honeyeater (Anthochaera phrygia) was formerly placed in its own genus, Xanthomyza, but placed with the Anthochaera genus in a 2004 molecular phylogenetic study.[7][8] The genus Anthochaeraissister group to the species Acanthagenys rufogularis, the spiny-cheeked honeyeater, separated as a monotypic genus.[9]
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| Cladogram showing the relationship between species.[9] |
The genus Anthochaera contains the following species:[8]
| Image | Common name | Scientific name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Red wattlebird | Anthochaera carunculata | southeast Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and southwest Western Australia |
 |
Little wattlebird | Anthochaera chrysoptera | coastal and sub-coastal south-eastern Australia |
 |
Yellow wattlebird | Anthochaera paradoxa | Tasmania |
 |
Western wattlebird | Anthochaera lunulata | south-western Australia. |
 |
Regent honeyeater | Anthochaera phrygia | south-eastern Australia |