Bell Miner - Bellbird - Bell Bird - Manorina melanophrys

Bell Miner (Bellbird)

Manorina melanophrys

Other Names: Bellbird, Bell Bird
Family: Meliphagidae (Honeyeaters, 74 species in Australia)
Size: 17-20 cm
Distribution: Within about 300 km of the coast of NSW, Eastern VIC and the most southern QLD coasts.
Status: Common
Habitat: Forests, woodlands
References: Simpson and Day, Reader's Digest

The bell miner, or bellbird, is most well know for its chiming bell-like call. They are much more often heard than they are seen, since the call is loud and the bird looks a drab green-grey colour that blends in very well with the trees it is found in. They are very closely related to the noisy miner and not closely related to the introduced common or "Indian" myna.

The beak and feet of the bell miner are yellowish-orange with a small reddish-orange patch behind the eye.

Bell Miner - Bellbird - Bell Bird - Manorina melanophrys
Photo: Lapstone, Blue Mountains NSW.

Bell Miner - Bellbird - Bell Bird - Manorina melanophrys
Artwork: John Gould, 'The Birds of Australia', 1848. Original Scanned Image.

Some Birdwatching Resources

Slater Field Guide to Australian Birds, Peter Slater, Pat Slater and Raoul Slater. This is a smaller field guide, and its advantage is it is easy to carry around. Its size is 21.3 x 11.4 x 2.8 centimetres, or 8.4 x 4.5 x 1.1 inches in the old scale. So it is a good one to get if you want to have your field guide with you out in the field. Unlike most of the field guides it also has illustrations of the eggs of all the birds that breed in Australia. It has very good reviews on Amazon.

Click here to Purchase from Australia (Booktopia)

Purchase from Australia (Angus & Robertson)

Click here to purchase from Australia (The Nile) $28.45 AUD (May be unavailable)

Click here to purchase from Australia (Fishpond) May be expensive.

Click here to purchase from Amazon

Finding Australian Birds A Field Guide to Birding Locations, by Tim Dolby and Rohan Clarke. From the eastern rainforests to central deserts, Australia is home to some 900 species of birds. This book covers over 400 Australian bird watching sites conveniently grouped into the best birding areas, from one end of the country to the other. This includes areas such as Kakadu in the Top End and rocky gorges in the central deserts of the Northern Territory, the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, rainforests distributed along the eastern Australian seaboard, some of the world's tallest forests in Tasmania, the Flinders Ranges and deserts along the iconic Strzelecki and Birdsville Tracks in South Australia, and the Mallee temperate woodlands and spectacular coastlines in both Victoria and south west Western Australia.

Purchase from Australia (Booktopia)

Share This Page

australia bell field

Content is copyright © Survive.au 2005-2026 All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use. Definitely read the disclaimer before trying anything from this website, especially including the practices and skills. This website uses affiliate links – this doesn't cost you any more, but I get a commission on purchases made through the website. As an Amazon Associate I earn similarly from qualifying purchases.

Bell Miner (Bellbird)

Manorina melanophrys

Some Birdwatching Resources

See Also

Share This Page

Website Index

Popular Pages

Newest Pages

Advertisement