Black bulbul

Hypsipetes leucocephalus

Photo by Irene Ho (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
black bulbul (en); tuta-preta (pt); bulbul noir (fr); bulbul nero (es); schwarzfluchtvogel (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Pycnonotidae


Range:
This species is found in southern Asia, with one population in western India and Sri Lanka and another from northern India and Pakistan, through the Himalayas and into southern China and Indochina.


Size:
These birds are 24-25 cm long and weigh 34-40 g.


Habitat:
The black bulbul is mostly found in tropical moist forests, but also in second growths and rural gardens. They occur from sea level up to an altitude of 3.200 m.


Diet:
They mainly feed on seeds, insects and berries, but also eat the nectar of various flowers.


Breeding:
Black bulbuls breed in February-June. The nest is a cup made of grasses, dry leaves, mosses, lichens and spider webs, lined with ferns and rootlets and placed in a fork in a tree or scrub. The female lays 2-3 eggs, which are incubated for 12-13 days. The chicks fledge 11-12 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and described as generally fairly common to very common. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.