From Opus

Alternative names: Tickell's Babbler; Buff-breasted Jungle Babbler; Mountain Brown Babbler

Photo by Dave B
Fraser's Hill, Malaysia, June 2009

Pellorneum tickelli

[edit] Identification

13 - 15cm. A nondescript small brown babbler:

• Squarish-tipped longish tail
• Forehead feathers seem slightly scaled with pale shaft-streaks
• Warm brown above, buff below
• Whitish belly

Sexes similar, juveniles with strongly rufescent upperparts.

[edit] Confusion species

Abbott's Babbler has grey on foreparts and is heavier billed. Spot-throated Babbler has fine spots on throat.

[edit] Distribution

From northeast India and Bangladesh over Burma and south China (Yunnan and Guangxi) to Thailand, Indochina and peninsular Malaysia.
Locally common in its range.

[edit] Taxonomy

There are 5 subspecies:

• P. t. assamense from northeast India to east Bangladesh and north and west Burma
• P. t. grisecens in southwest Burma
• P. t. fulvum in south China (Yunnan, Guangxi), southeast Burma, north Thailand, Laos and north Vietnam
• P. t. annamense in Cambodia, south Laos and south and central Vietnam
• P. t. tickelli in south Burma, west and south Thailand and peninsular Malaysia

Sumatran Babbler was formerly included in this species.
May form a superspecies with Temminck's Babbler.

[edit] Habitat

Evergreen forest. Sometimes also in mixed deciduous open or deep forest, secondary growth, bamboo thickets and undergrowth of secondary and logged forest. Up to 1550m, above 610m in Malaysia.

[edit] Behaviour

Feeds on insects.
Usually seen in pairs, sometimes associated with other small babblers. Skulking, keeps close to the ground in dense undergrowth.
Breeding season from March to July, multi-brooded. The nest is a deep cup or dome or semi-dome made of dry bamboo, other leaves, fine grasses and thin rootlets. It's placed on the ground, sometimes also at the base of a sapling up to 1.5m (mostly not higher than 0.3m). Lays 3 - 4 eggs.
Resident species.

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2010. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2010. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/Clements%206.5.xls/view
2. Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2007. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553422
3. Rasmussen, PC and JC Anderton. 2005. Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334672

• List of references

[edit] External Links