Alternative names: Large-footed Wren-Babbler
- Napothera macrodactyla
Turdinus macrodactylus
Identification
19cm. A fairly large, streaky brown babbler:
- Streaked light brown and black crown to back
- Plainer and more rufescent brown on uppertail-coverts and fluffy rump
- Upperwing and tail brown
- Whitish lores
- Greyish-blue bare skin around eye separated from crown by black line
- Blackish-brown ear-coverts
- Speckled whitish and brown submoustachial area
- White chin, throat and upper breast with some brown flecking, bordered by blackish breast-band (missing in lepidopleura)
- Brownish-grey breast and belly with some vague broad buffy white streaks
Sexes similar. Juveniles with paler upperparts and more rufous.
Distribution
Found from southern Thailand to peninsular Malaysia and on Sumatra and Java (Indonesia).
Extinct in Singapore, one unconfirmed recored in Bali. Fairly common in parts of its range.
Taxonomy
Three subspecies accepted:
- N. m. macrodactyla froum southern Thailand to peninsular Malaysia
- N. m. beauforti on Sumatra
- N. m. lepidopleura on Java
Also placed in genus Turdinus.
Habitat
Broadleaf evergreen forest, also selectively logged forest and bamboo forest. Prefers thickets of rattan, salak palm, bamboo and ginger. Up to 700m in Malaysia, up to 900m in Java.
Behaviour
Feeds on invertebrates.
Usually seen singly, in pairs or small groups. Forages close to the ground.
Breeding season March and September in Java, December to July in southeast Asia. The nest is a large cup made of dead leaves. It's placed 0.4 to 1m above the ground in the middle of rattan, pandan or in the crown of a spiny palm. Lays 2 eggs.
Resident species.
References
- Clements, JF. 2008. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2008. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
- 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
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Large Wren-Babbler. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 3 June 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Large_Wren-Babbler