Pardalote

Pardalotes, honeyeaters and thornbills are among several birds that feed on carbohydrate-rich sugars from trees: manna, the crystalline sap which oozes from injuries to trees made by insects or other animals; honeydew, the exudate of sap-sucking coccids and aphids; and lerps, the protective sugary coating of psyllid larvae.

They are pardalotes, tiny little feathered jewels with stubby bills and stubby tails, giving an oddly ladybird-like silhouette.

The forty-spotted pardalote (Pardalotus quadragintus) is the first Australian bird found to encourage trees to release manna, a sugary crystallised sap.