Tawny-bellied Babbler

The Tawny-bellied Babbler, Dumetia hyperythra is an Old World babbler. The Old World babblers are a large family of Old World passerine birds characterised by soft fluffy plumage. These are birds of tropical areas, with the greatest variety in southeast Asia.

Description

The Tawny-bellied Babbler is a small babbler at 13 cm including its long tail. It is dark brown above and orange-buff below, with a rufous grey crown. Three of the four races have white throats, but D. h. hyperythra of east India has the throat concolorous with its underparts.

Distribution and habitat

The babbler is a resident breeding bird in India, Sri Lanka and southwest Nepal. Its habitat is scrub and tall grassland.

Behaviour

The babbler builds its nest in a bush, concealed in dense masses of foliage. The normal clutch is three or four eggs. Like most babblers, it is not migratory, and has short rounded wings and a weak flight. It feeds mainly on insects and nectar.

References

• BirdLife International (2004). Dumetia hyperythra. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 12 May 2006.
• Birds of India by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, ISBN 0-691-04910-6
• A Field Guide to the Birds of the Indian Subcontinent by Kazmierczak and van Perlo, ISBN 1-873403-79-8
• Collar, N. J. & Robson, C. 2007. Family Timaliidae (Babblers) pp. 70 – 291 in; del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Christie, D.A. eds. Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 12. Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.