Mauritius Bulbul
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| Mauritius Bulbul | ||||||||||||||
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| Hypsipetes olivaceus Jardine & Selby, 1835 |
The Mauritius Bulbul (Hypsipetes olivaceus), also known as Mauritius Black Bulbul, is a passerine endemic to Mauritius.
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[edit] Description
It can reach a size up to 24 cm. It is characterized by bright yellow-brown eyes, pink legs, and an orange to yellow hued bill. Its plumage is generally greyish contrasted with a black crest. Its diet consists of insects, seeds, and fruits. Especially the ripe berries of Lantana camara are favoured. During the southern summer the female lays two pinkish eggs in a nest consisting of straw and roots. The incubation lasts between 14 and 16 days. The plumage of the juveniles is pale brown. Their bill is blackish.
[edit] Threats
In earlier times it was often a dish on festive days. In the mid-1970s only 200 pairs have survived due to the replacement of their forested habitats by tea plantations, the hunting by introduced macaques and the decline of their host plants due to the competition of invasive plants. Today it is regarded as rare on a stable level. 280 pairs were counted in 1993.
[edit] References
- Staub, France (1976), Birds of the Mascarenes and Saint Brandon, LABAMA HOUSE, Port Louis, Mauritius
- BirdLife International (2006). Hypsipetes olivaceus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 5 September 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of vulnerable
[edit] External links
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