Animalia Life

Yuhina flavicollis
SUBFAMILY
Timaliinae
TAXONOMY
Yuhina flavicollis Hodgson, 1836, central Nepal. Seven subspecies.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Yellow-naped yuhina, yellow-collared ixulus; French: Yuhina а cou roux; German: Gelbnackenyuhina.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
5 in (13 cm). Like other nine members of the genus, a compact, quietly colored bird with small, pointed bill and short, but well-defined, crest. Distinguished by combination of black malar stripe (“moustache”) and white streaking on brown flanks. Wings, mantle, and tail dark brown. Chest and throat white. Back of head gray, bordered by orange-brown, then white collars.
DISTRIBUTION
The length of the Himalayas, western China, Myanmar, and northern Indochina.
HABITAT
Montane evergreen and deciduous forests.
BEHAVIOR
Usually in large, noisy mixed-species flocks, with birds of similar size. Altitudinal migrant, moving downhill in winter.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Continuously foraging in interspecies groups for insects, berries, and nectar.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Monogamous, pairs become territorial during breeding season. Bowl-shaped nest of fine plant materials tied on to branches of shrubs and climbing plants. Two to three speckled eggs, incubated by both male and female.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Not threatened.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
While considered “uncommon” in China, it is one of the core species in “bird wave” multi-species flocks which attract birders from around the world to the Himalayas.

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