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Observation of presumed nest-building by
Scarlet-headed Flowerpecker Dicaeum
trochileum in Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia
IMAM TAUFIQURRAHMAN
On the morning of 6 June 2009 I was birdwatching
on the campus of Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta
(7.77°S 110.38°E) when at about 08h20 I spotted
a pair of Scarlet-headed Flowerpeckers Dicaeum
trochileum picking fibres from the fruit of milkweed
Calotropis gigantea, a large shrub which, in Java
and Bali, is often seen growing by the roadside
(Whitten et al. 1996).
The female picked most of the fibres (Plates 1–
3) while the male perched close by, although once
I saw both birds plucking fibres from one fruit (Plate
4). Rather than foraging, I deduced that this was
nest-building activity, as the Scarlet-headed
Flowerpecker is known to feed on seeds, berries
(especially mistletoe Loranthaceae) and small
insects (Cheke & Mann 2008). Moreover, the
activity was taking place during the breeding
season. All breeding records from West Java are
between January and October and during April and
May in East and Central Java (MacKinnon 1991).
Cheke & Mann (2008) recorded breeding from
February to July in West Java. Recently, an active
nest was found in November at Semarang in Central
Java, suggesting that the breeding season is more
extended (K. Baskoro in litt. 2008).
Plates 1 & 2. Female Scarlet-headed Flowerpecker Dicaeum trochileum plucking fibres from the fruit of a milkweed Calotropis
gigantea, Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia, June 2006.
IMAM TAUFIQURRAHMAN
BirdingASIA 14 (2010): 90–91
After about an hour’s observation, I moved on
and returned to the location about three hours later.
The birds were still busy, coming and going from
about 2 m up in the milkweed and disappearing
about 15 m up in the leaves of a duwet Eugenia
cumini or melinjo Gnetum gnemon tree about 6 m
away from it. Unfortunately, I was unable to locate
the nest.
Also during 2009, a female Scarlet-headed
Flowerpecker was observed collecting milkweed
fruit fibres in Baluran National Park, East Java. No
information was given about the exact date, but it
was recorded during the dry season (April to
September) and, unfortunately again, the observer
was unable to locate the nest (S. Winnasis pers.
comm.).
The Scarlet-headed Flowerpecker is endemic to
Indonesia (BirdLife International 2010). It is
common in gardens and open areas of the lowlands
of Java, its outlying islands, and Bali, but
uncommon on Lombok (Cheke & Mann 2008). It
is also found in the coastal and lowland regions of
southern Sumatra where it is uncommon (Cheke
& Mann 2008) and probably a recent arrival from
Java. MacKinnon (1991) described its nest as a
IMAM TAUFIQURRAHMAN
 BirdingASIA 14 (2010) 91

References
BirdLife International (2010) Species factsheet: Dicaeum trochileum.
Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 23/10/2010
Cheke, R. A. & Mann, C. F. (2008) Family Dicaeidae (flowerpeckers).
Pp.350–389 in J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott & D. A. Christie, eds. Handbook
of the birds of the world, 13. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions.
MacKinnon, J. (1991) A field guide to the birds of Java and Bali.
Yogyakarta: Universitas Gadjah Mada Press.
Whitten, T., Soeriaatmadja, R. E. & Afiff, S. A. (1996) The ecology of Java
and Bali. Singapore: Periplus Editions.

Imam Taufiqurrahman
IMAM TAUFIQURRAHMAN

Kelompok Pengamat Burung Bionic

(Biology UNY Ornithology Club)
Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta,
Karangmalang, Yogyakarta 55281, Indonesia
Email: orny_man@yahoo.com

Plate 3. Female about to carry off fibres she has collected.

IMAM TAUFIQURRAHMAN

Plate 4. Male helping female collect fibres.

hanging leafy pouch lined with fine grass, but as

far as I can determine the use of fibres from
milkweed fruits for nest construction or any other
purpose by this species has not been reported
previously.

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Gelatik Jawa Project for the
scope, Muh. Anis Utomo for the camera, Yayasan
Kutilang Indonesia and Mehd & Lena Halaouate
for the references. Thanks to Mr Karyadi Baskoro
from Semarang Bird Community for the nest record
from Semarang and to Kang Swiss Winnasis from
Baluran National Park for sharing information. I
also thank to Mr Ign Pramana Yuda from
Yogyakarta Atmajaya University for constructive
comments on the manuscript.