Whitehead's Spiderhunter
Arachnothera juliae Sharpe, 1887
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Whitehead's spiderhunter (Arachnothera juliae) is a species of spiderhunter in the sunbird and spiderhunter family Nectariniidae. It is endemic to Borneo, where it is found in the mountain ranges in the north-central part of the island. It inhabits hill dipterocarp forest, primary and secondary montane forest, and forest edge at elevations of 930–3,000 m (3,050–9,840 ft). A large and distinctive spiderhunter, the species is mostly brown with profuse whitish streaking all over the body and bright yellow vents and uppertail coverts. Both sexes are similar in appearance, but males are larger, with a length of 16.5–18 cm (6.5–7.1 in) compared to a length of 15.5–16.5 cm (6.1–6.5 in) for females. The juvenile plumage is unknown. The species feeds on small arthropods, berries, and nectar, foraging alone, in pairs, or in small flocks of up to five birds. It breeds from March to at least August, making bark-lined nests in hollows it excavates in naturally occurring clumps of moss, vegetation, and roots.
Wikipedia contributors, Whitehead's spiderhunter; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:01:19.976600+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Arachnothera juliae Sharpe, 1887
- Name authority
- Sharpe, 1887
- Common name
- Whitehead's Spiderhunter
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Nectariniidae
- Genus
- Arachnothera
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyNectariniidae Vigors, 1825
- genusArachnothera Temminck, 1826
- speciesArachnothera juliae Sharpe, 1887
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Arachnothera. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Streaky-breasted SpiderhunterArachnothera affinis (Horsfield, 1821) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Yellow-eared SpiderhunterArachnothera chrysogenys (Temminck, 1826) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Thick-billed SpiderhunterArachnothera crassirostris (Reichenbach, 1853) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Pale SpiderhunterArachnothera dilutior Sharpe, 1876 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Orange-tufted SpiderhunterArachnothera flammifera Tweeddale, 1878 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Spectacled SpiderhunterArachnothera flavigaster (Eyton, 1839) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Arachnothera modesta (Eyton, 1839) | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Long-billed SpiderhunterArachnothera robusta S. Muller & Schlegel, 1845 | NectariniidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=558737 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:67QJS. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.