Indian scimitar babbler

Appearance

The most distinctive feature of this 22 cm long bird is the long down-curved yellow bill which is blackish at the base of the upper mandible. It has a striking head pattern, with a long white supercilum above a broad black band through the eye. The white throat and breast contrast with the dark greyish brown on the upperside and dark grey to black on most of the underside. The tail is broad, long and graduated. They have short, round wings and being weak fliers are rarely seen flying in the open.

Indian scimitar-babblers have long down-curved yellow bills, used to work through the leaf litter in search of their food which is mainly insects and berries. They can be difficult to observe in the dense vegetation they prefer, but like many other babblers, these are noisy birds, and the characteristic bubbling calls are often the best indication that these birds are present. The call itself consists of a loud fluty ''oop-pu-pu-pu'' followed immediately by a ''krukru''. The second note is produced by the female and the duet is accurately synchronized. Leucistic plumages have been recorded.

Distribution

It is the only scimitar babbler in Peninsular India. This species is found south of line between Rajasthan and Orissa.

Behavior

The Indian scimitar babbler is a resident breeder bird. Its habitat is forest and secondary growth mainly in the hilly regions. They feed on insects on the ground or on vegetation. Hopping on the ground, they may turn over leaves or probe in leaf litter for prey. They may sometimes join mixed-species foraging flocks.

They breed from December to May. The nest is large and loose globular mass of foliage concealed in a bush on the ground or low down. They usually lay three eggs which are pure white in colour.

Habitat

The Indian scimitar babbler is a resident breeder bird. Its habitat is forest and secondary growth mainly in the hilly regions. They feed on insects on the ground or on vegetation. Hopping on the ground, they may turn over leaves or probe in leaf litter for prey. They may sometimes join mixed-species foraging flocks.

They breed from December to May. The nest is large and loose globular mass of foliage concealed in a bush on the ground or low down. They usually lay three eggs which are pure white in colour.