Animalia Life

Pomatorhinus montanus
SUBFAMILY
Timialiinae
TAXONOMY
Pomatorhinus montanus Horsfield, 1821, Java. Four subspecies.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Yellow-billed scimitar babbler; French: Moineau friquet; German: Rotrьckensдbler.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
8 in (20 cm). Striking bird reminiscent of New World thrashers (Mimidae). Bright chestnut mantle, flanks, and vent. Brownish primaries and tail. White chest and throat. Remainder of head black, except for well-defined white eyebrow. Long curving bill bright yellow, with black at rear of upper mandible, extending along part of culmen. Legs gray. Melodious voice.
DISTRIBUTION
Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Borneo.
HABITAT
Lower and middle stories of forests, at all altitudes.
BEHAVIOR
Often associated with laughing thrushes (Garrulax sp.). Single birds may be observed, but usually in small flocks. Vocal, but usually hard to see.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Continually hunting for snails, spiders, and insects, as well as small seeds and fruits.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Monogamous. Presumed to be similar to that of other members of genus, with cone or bowl-shaped nest of plant material constructed by both sexes, and containing four white eggs.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Not threatened but endemic in areas subject to increasing
HABITAT
loss due to logging.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
For many years, fairly small numbers have been exported through the cage-bird trade.

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