Black-crested Bulbul
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| Black-crested Bulbul | ||||||||||||||
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| Pycnonotus melanicterus (Gmelin, 1789) |
The Black-crested Bulbul, Pycnonotus melanicterus, is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is resident breeder in tropical southern Asia from India and Sri Lanka east to Indonesia.
This is a bird of forest and dense scrub. It builds its nest in a bush; two to four eggs is a typical clutch.
The Black-crested Bulbul is about 19cm in length, with a long tail. It has olive upperparts and bright yellow underparts. The head, throat and crest are black. Sexes are similar in plumage, but young birds are duller than adults. The flight is bouncing and woodpecker-like.
There are a number of regional variations in plumage. P. m. gularis of the Western Ghats in southwest India lacks a crest and has a bright red throat, and P. m. flaviventris, the endemic Sri Lankan subspecies, is also crestless and has its throat concolorous with the rest of the yellow underparts. Black-crested Bulbuls feed on fruit and insects.
Reference
- Birds of India by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, ISBN 0-691-04910-6