Animalia Life
Pycnonotus barbatus
TAXONOMY
Turdus barbatus Desfontaine, 1789, “Cфtes de Barbarie” (= near
Algiers).
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Yellow-vented bulbul, dark-capped bulbul, black-eyed
bulbul, white-eared bulbul, garden bulbul; French: Bulbul
commun, Bulbul des jardins; German: Graubьlbьl; Spanish:
Bulbul Naranjero.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
3.6–4.2 in (93–107 mm), 0.8–2.1 oz (23–60 g). Thrush-sized
with dark, slightly crested head, dark eye-ring and black bill.
Grayish brown upperparts and breast, white belly and white or
yellow undertail. Sexes alike, female slightly smaller. Juvenile
duller than adult with rusty tones.
DISTRIBUTION
Widespread and common, almost everywhere in Africa south
of 20°N, except in dry southwest and the Cape.
HABITAT
Any wooded or bushy habitat, especially near water.
BEHAVIOR
Usually in pairs, congregates in fruiting trees with other birds.
Not territorial outside breeding season. Song abrupt “quick,
chop, toquick”; one of earliest birds to sing in the morning,
starting before dawn and continuing for up to two hours.
Communal singing noted following feeding. Fond of bathing
and scolding, but not overly aggressive.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Eats wide variety of wild and cultivated fruits, also flowers, termites,
and other insects, sometimes small lizards.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Monogamous, said to mate for life. Pairs bond with preening
ceremony and duet singing. Lays two to five eggs in shallow,
thin cuplike nest in bush or shrub, lays twice per season. Incubation
12–14 days, usually by female only. Naked young cared
for by both parents, fledging 10–17 days.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Not threatened; widespread and common.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
None known.
Photo Gallery of - Common bulbul
