Mistle thrush International Union for Conservation of Nature as being of least concern. The mistle thrush was first described by Linnaeus in his "Systema naturae" in 1758 under its current scientific names. "Turdus" is the Latin for "thrush", and "viscivorus", "mistletoe eater", comes from "viscum" "mistletoe" and "vorare", "to devour". The bird's liking for mistletoe berries is also indicated by its English name, "mistle" being an old name for the plant. There are more than 60 species of medium to large thrushes in the genus "Turdus", characterised by rounded heads, longish pointed wings, and usually melodious songs. A mitochondrial DNA study identified
Spectacled flowerpecker visiting the same mistletoe included the yellow-breasted, yellow-rumped, yellow-vented and orange-bellied flowerpeckers. A bird photographed by Hanyrol H Ahmad Sah from the Belalong Canopy Walkway in Brunei was feeding on the ripe orange berries of an epiphytic "Medinilla" plant at canopy level. At Bukit Batikap in Central Kalimantan, spectacled flowerpeckers have been observed feeding on "Viscum" mistletoes berries. Edwards "et al." (2009) speculate that the spectacled flowerpecker is a rainforest canopy specialist, relying on ephemeral epiphytic fruits such as mistletoes, being highly mobile and rarely, if ever, visiting the understory of the forest - explaining why the new species remained