Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis)

Identification

• 25cm. A fairly large, stocky Myna.
• Brownish plumage.
• Black hood.
• Bare yellow eye-patch.
• Very short frontal crest.
• Dark brown wing with large white wing patches, obvious in flight.
• White vent and center of belly.
• Yellow legs and bill.
• Sexes similar. Juveniles are duller and browner.

Distribution

Found from Central Asia (Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan) south to Iran, Afghanistan, almost the entire Indian Subcontinent and east to Burma, South China (Yunnan and Hainan), Thailand, Indochina, the Malay Peninsula and Singapore.

Has been introduced widely elsewhere, including Florida, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Brunei, Sumatra, Taiwan, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Jordan, Israel, Russia (around Moscow and in Trans-Baikal region), Ascension, St Helena, Tenerife, Hawaii, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Fiji, Samoa (and many other small Pacific islands), Madagascar, Comoros, Mascarenes, Seychelles, Chagos, Maldives and Andamans and Nicobars.

Common to abundant in its range.

Taxonomy

Two subspecies recognized:

1. A. t. melanosternus in Sri Lanka
2. A. t. tristis in the rest of the range

Habitat

Typically in open woodland, cultivation and around habitation, also in towns and cities. Avoids forest. Occurs up to 3000m in the Himalayas, up to 1525m in southeast Asia.

Behaviour

Omnivorous. Feeds on insects, frogs, fish, geckos, other small lizards, eggs and nestlings, mice, carrion, worms, snails, spiders, seeds, fruit and nectar. The generic name Acridotheres means "grasshopper hunter".

Forages singly or in pairs, mostly on the ground.

Forms communal roosts in trees, sometimes with thousands of birds. May roost with other species like Javan Myna, Asian Glossy Starling, Purple-backed Starling, Common Starling, Rosy Starling or Crows, Parakeets and Sparrows.

Breeding season differs through range, breeds all year in India. Monogamous, belived to form pairs for life. Nests solitary. The nest is placed in tree holes, particularly palms but also in other nooks and crannies (including buildings). The normal clutch is 4 - 6 eggs.

A resident species.

Gallery

Male bird in Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Female bird in Matale, Sri Lanka

Male  and Female birds in Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Juvenile  bird in Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Video of behavior of Common Myna

Asian Koel (Eudynamys scolopaceus)

Identification

40-45cm
Male:

• Bluish-black
• Pale green bill
• Red eyes
• Grey legs and feet

Female:

• Brownish upper parts with white spots
• Whitish underparts heavily striped and spotted brown
• Olive or green beak
• Red eyes

Distribution

Found from southern Asia, China, Indochina and Indonesia to New Guinea.

Taxonomy

Formerly also "Common Koel".

Asian Koel with thirteen subspecies were split from Australian Koel and Black-billed Koel by some authorities, however, others still think that the best treatment is to consider all three as one species which would then be named Common Koel, Eudynamys scolopacea.

At least one authority goes the other way and want to split subspecies orientalis (and other subspecies) from the rest of Asian Koel: the new species if accepted would become Pacific Koel, Eudynamys orientalis and would include Australian Koel.

Subspecies


There are 13 subspecies:

1. E. s. scolopaceus: Nepal to Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Laccadives and Maldives
2. E. s. chinensis: Southern China and Indochina; winters to Borneo
3. E. s. harterti: Hainan (southern China)
4. E. s. malayanus (dolosa): North-eastern India to Thailand, Malaya, Sumatra, Borneo and Lesser Sundas
5. E. s. simalurensis: Simeulue Island (off western Sumatra)
6. E. s. frater: Northern Philippines (Calayan and Fuga)
7. E. s. mindanensis: Philippines, Palawan, Sulu Archaepelago, Sangihe Island and Talaud Islands
8. E. s. corvinus: Northern Moluccas (Morotai, Halmahera, Ternate, Tidore and Bacan)
9. E. s. orientalis: Southern Moluccas (Buru, Manipa, Kelang, Seram, Ambon, Watubela)
10. E. s. picatus: Kai Islands and Sumba to Timor and Roma
11. E. s. rufiventer: New Guinea
12. E. s. salvadorii: Bismarck Archipelago
13. E. s. alberti: Solomon Islands

Habitat

Light woodland and on the fringes of urban areas, mangrove, scrub, plantations, orchards, gardens, parks, rare in forests.

Behaviour

Breeding

These birds are what you call brood-parasitic, meaning it lays its eggs in nest of Large-billed Crow, and House Crow.

Diet

Whilst the adults feed mainly on fruit, their diet also includes insects, caterpillars, eggs and small vertebrates.

Vocalization 

Call: This is most unique. It consists of a series of 'tuhoo's wherein the 'hoo' is slightly drawn out. The repetitions are very quick, one after the other.

In Culture

Since the bird is most active just before the onset of monsoon, Indians believe that its arrival heralds the oncoming rains.

In Sri Lanka, this bird has a strong association with the traditional new year celebrations of Sri Lanka. In the literature around the festival, the song of the bird is regarded as heralding new year. This bird is known as the koha in Sri Lanka by the Sinhala speaking community.

Gallery

Female Bird in Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Male Bird in Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Male Bird in Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Male Bird in Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Male Bird in Malabe, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Indian Pond Heron (Ardeola grayii)

Identification



Adult Breeding: Head and neck light buffy-brown, Long head plumes, Scapulars and Mantle redish-chocolate brown. White Throat, Greater Upper Coverts slightly buff.

Adult Non-breeding and Juvenile: Indistinguishable from other Pond Herons in Non-breeding/Juvenile Plumage.

Distribution

Iran, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal, Burma and on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Taxonomy


Monotypic, Superspecies with A. bacchus, A. speciosa and perhaps A. idae.


Habitat


Usually freshwater, sometimes brackish lagoons or on coastal mudflats.


Behaviour

They usually feed at the edge of ponds but make extensive use of floating vegetation such as Water hyacinth to access deeper water. They may also on occasion swim on water or fish from the air and land in deeper waters. They have also been observed to fly and capture fishes leaping out of water. Sometimes, they fly low over water to drive frogs and fishes towards the shore before settling along the shoreline.

The breeding season is prior to the Monsoons. They nest in small colonies, often with other wading birds, usually on platforms of sticks in trees or shrubs. Most nests are built at a height of about 9 to 10 m and in large leafy trees. The nest material is collected by the male while the female builds the nest. 3-5 eggs are laid. The eggs hatch asynchronously, taking 18 to 24 days to hatch. Both parents feed the young. Fish are the main diet fed to young. Nest sites that are not disturbed may be reused year after year.

Gallery

 Adult Male In Non-breeding Season 

Adult Female In Non-breeding Season

Adult Male In Breeding Season

Adult Female In Breeding Season

Juvenile Bird

Scarlet Macaw (Ara macao)

The Scarlet Macaw Taken in National Zoological Garden , Dehiwala , Sri Lanka 

The Scarlet Macaw (Ara macao) is a large, colorful macaw. It is native to humid evergreen forests in the American tropics. Range extends from extreme south-eastern Mexico to Amazonian Peru, Bolivia and Brazil in lowlands up to 500 m (1,640 ft) (at least formerly) up to 1,000 m (3,281 ft). It has suffered from local extinction through habitat destruction and capture for the parrot trade, but locally it remains fairly common. Formerly it ranged north to southern Tamaulipas. It can still be found on the island of Coiba. It is the national bird of Honduras.

It is about 81 centimetres (32 in) long, of which more than half is the pointed, graduated tail typical of all macaws, though the Scarlet Macaw has a larger percentage of tail than the other large Macaws. The average weight is about 1 kilogram (2.2 lb). The plumage is mostly scarlet, but the rump and tail-covert feathers are light blue, the greater upper wing coverts are yellow, the upper sides of the flight feathers of the wings are dark blue as are the ends of the tail feathers, and the undersides of the wing and tail flight feathers are dark red with metallic gold iridescence. Some individuals may have green in the wings.

Three subspecies present varying widths in their yellow wing band. There is bare white skin around the eye and from there to the bill. Tiny white feathers are contained on the face patch. The upper mandible is mostly pale horn in color and the lower is black. The only difference between ages is that young birds have dark eyes, and adults have light yellow eyes. It is frequently confused with the slightly larger Green-winged Macaw, which has more distinct red lines in the face and no yellow in the wing. Scarlet Macaws make very loud, high & sometimes low-pitched, throaty squawks, squeaks and screams designed to carry many miles to call for their groups. They are also kept as pets in many countries.

Pictures

In National Zoological Garden , Dehiwala , Sri Lanka 

In National Zoological Garden , Dehiwala , Sri Lanka 

In National Zoological Garden , Dehiwala , Sri Lanka 

In National Zoological Garden , Dehiwala , Sri Lanka 

Yellow-billed Babbler (Turdoides affinis)

Identification

These birds have grey brown upperparts, grey throat and breast with some mottling, and a pale buff belly. The head and nape are grey. The race T. a. taprobanusi of Sri Lanka is rufous beneath, and more heavily streaked on the throat and breast. It resembles Jungle Babbler, Turdoides striatus, but that species does not occur on the island. It has short rounded wings and a weak flight.

Distribution

The Yellow-billed Babbler is a common resident breeding bird in Sri Lanka and southern India. Locally common or abundant.

Taxonomy


Two subspecies are recognized
T. a. affinis from India
T. a. taprobanus from Sri Lanka

Habitat

Its habitat is scrub, cultivation, open forest, orchards, gardens. Usually found in drier habitat than Jungle Babbler.

Behaviour

Breeding season is all year, but most birds breed between March and November in India and between November to March in Sri Lanka. It builds its nest in a tree, concealed in dense masses of foliage. The normal clutch is two to four greenish blue eggs, although up to five may be laid by birds in the hills of Sri Lanka.

The Yellow-billed Babbler lives in flocks of seven to ten or more which is why it's called "Seven Sisters" by locals (but this name can also refer to Jungle Babbler). It is a noisy bird, and the presence of a flock may generally be known at some distance by the continual chattering, squeaking and chirping produced by its members.

It feeds mainly on insects, but also eats fruit. The birds forages mainly on ground, occasionally they are seen fly catching.

Gallery 

Brown-headed Barbet (Megalaima zeylanica)

Malabe , Colombo , Sri Lanka

Identification


The Brown-headed Barbet or Large Green Barbet is a relatively large barbet at 27 cm. It is a plump bird, with a short neck, large head and short tail. Green plumage. Streaked brown head, neck and breast. Yellow eye patch. Heavy conical red bill. Sexes similar.


Distribution

Asia: found in Nepal, Pakistan, India, Eastern and Western Himalayas, 

        Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Taxonomy

There are 3 subspecies:

M. z. inornata:

West-central and south-western India (Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka)

M. z. caniceps:

South-western Nepal and northern India


M. z. zeylanica:
Southern India (Kerala and southern Tamil Nandu) and Sri Lanka


Habitat


Open forests and forest edges, woodlands and gardens.


Behaviour

The Brown-headed Barbet is a resident breeder in the Indian Subcontinent, widespread in India and also seen in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It is an arboreal species of gardens and wooded country which eats fruit and insects. Nonetheless, it is fairly tolerant of humans and is often seen in cities, in greenery. It nests in a tree hole, laying 2-4 eggs. The bird is largely frugivorous on mangos, ripe jack, papaya, banana, figs and similar cultivated fruit trees. Its habitat includes urban and country gardens though it tends to eschew heavy forest. It nests in a suitable hole in a tree that it will often excavate out, not unlike a woodpecker. A pair will take it in turns to incubate the eggs and they often communicate with each other using their Kura, kura calls.

Gallery

Knuckles Mountain Range , Matale

Knuckles Mountain Range , Matale

Knuckles Mountain Range , Matale

Knuckles Mountain Range , Matale

Nest Of Brown-headed Barbet - Knuckles Mountain Range , Matale