Some time ago I had posted pictures (in my other blog) of bulbuls perched on a clump of sunflower plants. Here's one of the shots again with the barely noticeable birds...this was taken in July in Delhi. Ginny of Let Your Light Shine asked me whether I could post clearer pictures some other time. Well, I was lucky! The other day I spotted the red-vented bulbul on my neighbour's terrace. These aren't the best shots but so much better than the ones I had taken in Delhi on my cell phone.
The red-vented bulbul/Pycnonotus cafer is a member of the passerine birds. It is resident breeder in tropical southern Asia, from Pakistan to south-west China. It has been introduced and has established itself in the wild in many Pacific islands including Fiji, Somoa, Tonga, and Hawaii.It has also established itself in parts of Dubai,the United Arab Emirates, and New Zealand.
The size of the bulbul is about 20-22 cms. The crest and the crimson patch at the root of its tail gives the bird a distinctive appearance. This is a bird of dry scrub, open forest, plains, and cultivated lands. Bulbuls feed on berries, nectar, insects, and occasionally geckos. In the Pacific islands and in New Zealand they are considered pests because they damage crops. They are also known to disperse the seeds of invasive plants such as lantana camara and miconia calvescens.
4 comments:
Thank you for these pictures!! My, this is surely an exotic bird to me. Are there different types of bulbuls, or is the red vented the only one? The crest and red patch would be real distinctive! Do they make a loud raucous sound, or sing pretty?
Very interesting Kanak.
Hi Kanak; sure a little surviver with its varied diet. Perhaps one day it will find its way to Australia as well! It is a boyish looking little bird.
Ginny, there are many different types but we only get to see the common bulbul and the red-vented bulbul here. In other regions, there are the yellow ones and the red-whiskered ones. The call is short and sharp but it isn't something that stays on in your mind. But not raucous at all.
Mildred...thanks!
Trudi...I read on the Avian website that it was introduced in the Melbourne area but failed to establish there.
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