The Indian scimitar babbler (Pomatorhinus horsfieldii ) is an Old World babbler. It is found in peninsular India in a range of forest habitats. They are most often detected by their distinctive calls which include an antiphonal duet by a pair of birds. They are often hard to see as they forage through dense vegetation. The long curved yellow, scimitar-shaped bills give them their name. It has been treated in the past as subspecies of the white-browed scimitar babbler which is found along the Himalayas but now separated into two species, the peninsular Indian species and the Sri Lanka scimitar babbler (Pomatorhinus melanurus ).
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
Flocking birds are those that tend to gather to forage or travel collectively. Avian flocks are typically associated with migration. Flocking also ...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe most distinctive feature of this 22 cm long bird is the long down-curved yellow bill which is blackish at the base of the upper mandible. It has a striking head pattern, with a long white supercilium above a broad black band through the eye. The white throat and breast contrast with the dark greyish brown on the upperside and dark grey to black on most of the underside. The tail is broad, long and graduated. They have short, round wings and being weak fliers are rarely seen flying in the open.
Indian scimitar-babblers have long down-curved yellow bills, used to work through the leaf litter and bark in search of their food which is mainly insects and berries. They can be difficult to observe in the dense vegetation they prefer, but like many other babblers, these are noisy birds, and the characteristic bubbling calls are often the best indication that these birds are present. The call itself consists of a loud fluty oop-pu-pu-pu followed immediately by a krukru. The second note is produced by the female and the duet is accurately synchronized. Leucistic plumages have been recorded.
It is the only scimitar babbler in Peninsular India. This species is found south of a line between Rajasthan and Orissa.
The Indian scimitar babbler is a resident breeder (non-migratory) bird. Its habitat is forest and secondary growth mainly in the hilly regions. They feed on insects on the ground or on vegetation. Hopping on the ground, they may turn over leaves or probe in leaf litter for prey. They may sometimes join mixed-species foraging flocks.
They breed from December to May. The nest is a large and loose globular mass of foliage concealed in a bush on the ground or low down. They usually lay three eggs (but varies from two to four) which are pure white in colour.