The white-streaked honeyeater (''Trichodere cockerelli'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

in the family

Meliphagidae The honeyeaters are a large and diverse family, Meliphagidae, of small to medium-sized birds. The family includes the Australian chats, myzomelas, friarbirds, wattlebirds, miners and melidectes. They are most common in Australia and New Guinea ...

. It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

within the genus ''Trichodere''. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Cape York Peninsula Cape York Peninsula is a large peninsula located in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is the largest unspoiled wilderness in northern Australia.Mittermeier, R.E. et al. (2002). Wilderness: Earth’s last wild places. Mexico City: Agrupación ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

subtropical or tropical dry forest The tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest is a habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature and is located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. Though these forests occur in climates that are warm year-round, and may receive ...

John Gould John Gould (; 14 September 1804 – 3 February 1881) was an English ornithologist. He published a number of monographs on birds, illustrated by plates produced by his wife, Elizabeth Gould, and several other artists, including Edward Lear, ...

described the white-streaked honeyeater as ''Ptilotis cockerelli'' in 1869, naming it in honour of the person—one Mr Cockerell—who shot the specimen. Gould was unsure of which genus to place it in, noting it had features that linked it to ''Stigmatops'' and ''

Meliphaga ''Meliphaga'' is a genus of birds in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. The genus was introduced by the English artist John Lewin in 1808. The name ''Meliphaga'' combines the Ancient Greek meaning "honey" and meaning eating. The type species ...

'' as well, and even contemplated placing it in its own genus. Alfred North erected the genus ''Trichodere'' in 1912, observing that its throat feathers were hairy in appearance, unlike any other honeyeater. The genus name was derived from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

words ''thrix'' 'hair' and ''deirē'' 'throat'. A 2017 genetic study using both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA found the white-streaked honeyeater to lie within the clade of the genus ''

Phylidonyris ''Phylidonyris'' is a genus of birds in the honeyeater family that are endemic to Australia. It contains the following species: References Bird genera {{Meliphagidae-stub ...

''. Its ancestor diverged from the lineage giving rise to the New Holland honeyeater and

white-cheeked honeyeater The white-cheeked honeyeater (''Phylidonyris niger'') inhabits the east coast and the south-west corner of Australia. It has a large white patch on its cheek, brown eyes, and a yellow panel on its wing. Taxonomy The white-cheeked honeyeater was ...

around 7 million years ago, and their common lineage diverged from that of the

crescent honeyeater The crescent honeyeater (''Phylidonyris pyrrhopterus'') is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family Meliphagidae native to southeastern Fauna of Australia, Australia. A member of the genus ''Phylidonyris'', it is most closely related to the comm ...

around 7.5 million years ago.

Molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions which satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, and bioche ...

analysis has shown honeyeaters to be related to the Pardalotidae (pardalotes),

Acanthizidae The Acanthizidae—known as Australian warblers—are a family of passerine birds which includes gerygones, the thornbills '' Acanthiza'', and the scrubwrens of '' Sericornis''. The Acanthizidae family consists of small to medium passerine birds, ...

(Australian warblers, scrubwrens, thornbills, etc.), and the

Maluridae The Australasian wrens are a family (biology), family, Maluridae, of small, insectivorous passerine birds endemic to Australia and New Guinea. While commonly known as wrens, they are unrelated to the wren, true wrens. The family comprises 32 spec ...

(Australian fairy-wrens) in the large superfamily

Meliphagoidea __NOTOC__ Meliphagoidea is a superfamily of passerine birds. They contain a vast diversity of small to mid-sized songbirds widespread in the Austropacific region. The Australian Continent has the largest richness in genera and species. Systemati ...

References

white-streaked honeyeater The white-streaked honeyeater (''Trichodere cockerelli'') is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Trichodere''. It is endemic to Cape York Peninsula. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dr ...

Birds of Cape York Peninsula Endemic birds of Australia

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Meliphagidae-stub