[4] The spiny-cheeked honeyeater is mainly frugivorous, but will also eat nectar, blossoms, insects, reptiles, and young birds.

[4] Its range includes most of Australia, except for Tasmania, northern tropical areas, and the southeastern coast.

[7] The spiny-cheeked honeyeater, Acanthagenys rufogularis, is a medium-sized bird, ranging from 22 to 27 centimeters (8.7 to 10.6 inches) in length.

[8][9] Its beak is long and straight with a black tip and a fleshy red or pink colour towards the chin and up to the gape.

The characteristic face pattern includes a long, dark stripe through the eyes to the ear coverts.

One example is on the Mornington Peninsula, located on the eastern coast of Port Phillip Bay in Victoria, where the spiny-cheeked honeyeaters have darker bellies.

In these areas, there are occasional small shrubs or trees (mostly Acacia species), where the birds may find refuge.

[10] In coastal regions, such as the Mornington Peninsula, the birds can be found in tea tree environments along the foreshore.

[7] This is borne out by the observation of newly hatched chicks being fed by the female bird with dark-coloured larvae of the scale insect around November and December.

[12] Later observations on the Mornington Peninsula, near Sorrento, saw fully-fledged chicks in late January being fed by the male bird on red berries, available in the region at that time of year.

[16] However, when there is an abundance of nectar in the winter and spring, the birds tend to take advantage of this resource, allowing other times of the year for their diet on insects.

After feeding on the ripened fruit, the birds would provide a service of seed dispersal, which ensures the food source for this and other species over a widening territory.