Lanka Sithasiya - The Ceylon White-Eye

Identification

Size of Loten's Sunbird-i.e. smaller than the sparrow, but noticeably larger than the Hin Malkurulla, from which it is readily distinguished by its darker green plumage. Sexes alike.

Behavior

It is even more sociable than the other birds, forming very large, scattered flocks except in the breeding season, when the birds pair off.Always on the move, it spends its waking hours in an almost caseless search for small caterpillars (the tea tortix, Homona coffearia, being a special favourite), tiny moths, etc.,and in visiting nectar-producing blossoms and berry-bearing shrubs. 

The breeding season is from March to May. Sometimes they have a second season in August-September. The nest is large and not quite solidly built. It is a neat cup, composed of fine fibers, moss and fluff, slung hammock-wise in a fork of a leafy twig. They lay two eggs that measure about 16.2×11.3mm. The eggs are very pale prussian blue in color.

Location

It is found only in the Sri Lankan mountains above 3,000 feet; at the higher elevations, above about 5,000 feet, it is, I think unquestionably, the commonest bird.

Konda Kawda - Sri Lanka Drongo

Identification

• Black plumage with metallic blue or greenish-blue gloss
• Arching, helmet-like crest
• Deeply forked tail
• Red eye
• Sexes similar

Behavior

Forest , forest edges, plantations, wooded gardens.

Like most drongos, hawks after insects from open perches.

A superb mimic of the calls of other birds but always has a metallic sound.

Lanka Pilachcha - White-Throated Flowerpecker

Identification

About the size of the Purple-rumed Sunbird, which it somewhat resembles at a distance; the male is at once distinguished, however, by its pure-white throat and dark bluish-grey back, while both sexes have the beak short and stout-very different from the Sunbird's. 

Behavior

It lives either solitary, in pairs, or in little family parties, and is not easy to meet with because it keeps mainly to the tops of tall trees, either in forests or on its outskirts. However, it is very fond of the nectar of the red cotton tree and when these trees are in flower-about Christmas time in its range-it may be found fairly easily. 

The breeding season is from January to August. The nest is often built in a Hora tree. It is a hanging pocket of felted plant down, with the entrance at the top, just below the supporting twig. The two eggs are dull white, irregularly spotted with purplish red. They measure about   16×12 mm.

Location

This scarce little bird is found only in the rain forests of the south-western parts ofthe wet zone, including the neighbouring hills up to 3,000 feet. 

Kahibella - Lanka Blue Magpie

 

Identification

Sri Lanka Blue Magpie is about the same size as the European Magpie at 42–47 cm. The adults are blue with chestnut head and wings, and a long white-tipped tail. The legs and bill are red. The young bird is a duller version of the adult. Sri Lanka Blue Magpie has a variety of calls including mimicry, a loud chink-chink and a rasping krak-krak-krak-krak.

Behavior

It is scarce and usually shy, but locally common and bolder. It associates in flocks up to six or seven, but pairs or solitary individuals are sometimes met with. A very energetic, agile bird, most of its time is spent in searching for food among foliage at all levels from the ground to the tops of tall trees. It capture the critters like hairy caterpillars, green tree-crickets, various chafer beetles, tree-frogs and lizards. The breeding season is in the first quarter of the year, so far as is known, but the nest has seldom been found. The nest resembled a small crow’s nest. It is very well concealded among small twigs and foliage near the top of the tree. The eggs number three to five and are whitish, profusely spotted and speckled with various shades of brown. They measure about 30.5 x 22.1 mm.

Location

It inhabits the heavy virgin forests of the mountains and wet-zone foot hills.

Lanka Salalihiniya - Sri Lanka Hill Myna

Identification

Rather larger than the Common Mynah; larger than the Salalihiniya but very similar to it except in having only one part of wattles, those at the back of the head, and some black at the base of the beak. Sexes alike, and the young differ only in being duller, and having smaller wattles.

Behavior

It lives in scattered colonies, but it does not seem to be quite so gregarious as Salalihiniya (The Common Hill-Myna), usually occurring in pairs. It loves high trees, and may be found in the heart of tall forests, as well as on estates and village gardens in their neighbourhood. It is a restless bird. The food consists of wild fruits such as banyan, bo and nuga figs, wild nutmegs, and sapu seeds.

The breeding season is February-May and a secondary season in August-September. The nest is made in a cavity in a tree-bole or large branch. The two eggs are pale prussian blue, blotched with purplish brown. They measure about 33×25mm 

Location

This Grackle inhabits the forests and well-wooded country of the wet zone, ascending the hills, n the wetter districts of the south and west, to at least 6,000 feet. Occasionally it strays into the drier, eastern slopes of the main range, but it is essentially a bird of the wet-zone hills. 

Sri Lanka Spurfowl (Haban Kukula)

 

Identification

Sri Lanka Spurfowl is a plump, 37 cm long bird. Both sexes have brown upperparts, wings and tail. There is a red facial skin patch, and a whitish throat. The legs are red.

The adult male has scaly black and white underparts and head. There is also extensive white spotting on the brown wings and upperback. The legs have two long spurs, which give rise to the specific name. The female has chestnut underparts and a plain brown back and wings.

Behaviour

Strictly a forest bird, it is so shy and wary that its presence in a district would often pass quite unknown were it not for its unmistakable cry; this reveals that it is not uncommon in much of the more densely forested parts of its range. The cry is peculiar, ringing cackle, consisting of series of three-syllabled whistles.

Distinctly a ground bird. The food consists of various seeds, fallen berries, termites and other insects, and it scratches vigorously for them amongst the dead leaves, etc., of the forest floor. The breeding season is in the north-east monsoon, and sometimes a second brood is raised in July-September.

The nest is a slight scrape in the ground in the shelter of a rock, bush, etc. The eggs from the normal clutch, but up to five have been recorded; they are cream or warm buff in color, and exactly resemble miniature hens’ eggs in appearance. They measure about 43 ~ 31 mm.   

Locations

Humid forests. Breeding Ground is in the Wet Zone, eastern & southern sectors of Dry Zone and seldom in the Hill Country. Rare.

White-faced Starling

 

Identification 

The adults of these 22cm-long birds have green-glossed dark grey upperparts and whitish underparts. The head is paler than the underparts. The sexes are similar, but juveniles are duller, with brown upperparts and greyer underparts. 

Behaviour 

It is strictly arboreal, frequenting the tops of tall trees, and commonly associates in small flocks. Its food consists largely of wild fruits, such as cinnamon berries and the figs of several species of Ficus, but it doubtless eats insects; and like many other birds, it is very fond of the nectar of the red cotton tree. The nest appears to have discovered only once-in April, by Frederick Lewis, many years ago. It was in a tree-hole, and the two eggs were lying on bare wood. They were pale blue, and measured about 25.6 X 20 mm. 

Locations 

This is a rare bird, confined to the tall forests, and their adjacent patanas and clearings of the wet zone, including the Adam’s Peak range up to 4,000 feet or perhaps higher.

Sri Lanka Whistling Thrush

Identification 

This is a small whistling thrush, at only 20cm. Adult males are dark blue with a darker head and back. There are bright blue patches on the shoulders, supercilia and forehead. The female is brown above and chestnut below, but has a bright blue shoulder patch like the male. The male sings its simple whistling song from trees, usually in deep cover. 

Behaviour 

This bird is very shy. They prefer thick under growths. Sometimes it comes out. It can be seen hunting or singing on sticks or rocks beside streams. They prey on creatures like insects, geckos. The breeding season lies from March to May. But the April is more important. They make the nest on banks or on branches of 5-10 feet tall tree. The neat is cup shaped. The “Varalla” and ferns are used as main building materials. Inside the nest is made out of dead leaves. About two white color eggs with pale and red brown colored patches and strips are laid at a time. But most of the time only one offspring is born. Hatching is done by female, but the feeding is done by both male and female.

Locations 

They live hidden in place with water flowa at about 3000 feet elevations. They can be seen in thick under growths near flowing streams�.They are recorded in Haggala Horton place. Today they are restricted to the higher elevations of central hills. This bird is difficult to find d

Sri Lanka Yellow-Fronted Barbet

Identification 

This is a medium-sized barbet at 21 cm. It is a plump bird, with a short neck, large head and short tail. The adult Yellow-fronted Barbet has a mainly green body and wing plumage, with a scaly appearance to the breast. It has a blue face and throat, and a yellow crown and moustachial stripes. The call is a rolling kow-kow-kow-kow. 

Behaviour  

Throughout its range it is a common bird, not shy, and well known for its resounding calls, which form a pleasant feature of its haunts. The Yellow-fronted Barbet feeds on numerous kinds of berries, wild figs, and cultivated fruits such as guavas and pawpaws-being rather a pest in orchards. It feeds its young mainly on fruit, but also on some animal food as W.W.A. Philips has published a photograph of one at its nest-hole with a gecko in its beak. The breeding season is from February to May, with a secondary season in August-September, but an occasional nest may be found at other times of the year. The nest-hole is very similar to that of the Brown-headed Barbet but slightly smaller- about two inches in diameter. The cavity inside is oval and, if a new one, is about eight inches deep; but sometimes the birds use a nest for several years running, digging it deeper each year until it may be two feet or more deep. The height from the ground varies greatly, but is usually from six to ten feet. The two or three white, and smooth but not glossy, eggs measure about 28 x 21 mm.

Locations 

Forests, home gardens. Breeding Grounds- Mainly lower Hill country & Wet Zone but less common in Dry Zone. Very common.

Sri Lanka Hanging Parrot

Identification 

This is a small, mainly green hanging parrot, only 14 cm long with a short tail. The adult has a red crown, rump and bill, and an orange tint to its back. Immature birds lack the orange hue to the back, have a duller rump, and have only a hint of orange on the crown

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Behaviour 

Sri Lanka Hanging Parrot is less gregarious than some of its relatives, and is usually alone or in small groups outside the breeding season. Its flight is swift and direct, and the call is a sharp whistled twiwittwit..twitwitwit. The lorikeet is a convivial little bird, delighting in juicy fruits, the nectar of flowers (especially red cotton), and the juice of palms collected in toddy-drawers’ pots. Sri Lanka Hanging Parrot is a bird of open forest. It is strictly arboreal, never descending to the ground. It nests in holes in trees, laying 2-3 white eggs in the first half of the year, and sometimes again in July-September. Its breeding habits are highly remarkable.

Locations 

Forrest, gardens. Breeding Ground is mostly around the Country. Common.

Maha Rathu Karala - Crimson - Backed Flamback

Identification

This Flamback is about 11.5 ; tail 3.5 ; wing 5.9 ; tarsus 1.1; bill from gape 1.9. Back, scapulars, and outer surface of wings, except primary-coverts and outer webs of primaries, dull crimson, edges of feathers brighter, rump also brighter. In all other respects this species resembles C. gutticristatus except that there is everywhere more black and less white, there are only white spots on the back of the neck, and the sides of the head above the malar region and of the neck are almost all black, the superciliary stripe being represented by a row of white spots. The black borders of the breast-feathers are very broad. Sexual distinctions as in C. gutticristatus.Bill brownish or olivaceous at the base, greenish white in the middle, the tip dusky; iris yellowish white; legs and feet greenish' slate.

Behavior

This species haunting a nest-hole high up a large tree in January in such a manner as to indicate that they had young.

Location

This Woodpecker is found in forests almost throughout the island, on both hills and lowlands.

Alu Kadatta - The Ceylon Grey Hornbill

Identification

Size about that of the Black Crow, but with much longer bill and tail. Sexes alike, except that the bill of the female is dull black with a long cream patch on the side of the side of the upper mandible.

Behavior

It lives in pairs or small flocks except when some wild fig tree is in fruit, when large numbers will assemble to feed on the fruit. In spite of its size it is often very inconspicuous as it has a habit of sitting quietly among foliage, in a very upright position, turning its head stealthily in all directions while scanning the environment for food. Its favourite abode is the medium levels of tall forest, where hanging creepers and lianas supply convenient perches as well as concealment.

The breeding season is from April to August. The nest is cavity in the bole of a large tree, usually at height from the ground. The eggs number one to three, are white, soon getting dirty, and measure about 41.5×33 mm.

Location

This hornbill is common in all low-country forested areas, both wet and dry zone, and it occasionally ascends the hills to 4,000 feet though it is decidedly rate at such elevations.

Heen Kottoruwa - Ceylon Small Barbet

Identification

Slightly larger than a sparrow. Sexes alike. The bright green upper parts, orange-yellow-face and throat-patches, and very small scarlet breast-spot, distinguish it from the Crimson-breasted Barbet.

Behavior

Out of the breeding season it is very gregarious, forming large, scattered flocks especially in the neighbourhood of fruiting trees, such as banyan, bo, and other wild figs; like all barbets it is predominantly a fruit eater. After gorging themselves, they repair to the top branches and indulge in their hobby of vocal music, making the air pulsate with the chorus of pop op oping-to the distraction of their human audience.

The breeding season is from January to June. The nest-hole is indistinguishable from that of the Crimsone-breasted Barbet, but is more often, I think, dug into the lower surface of a sloping branch rather than into an upright post, and is usually higher in a tree than with that species. Dead branches of breadfruit, dadap, and flamboyant are much favoured as nesting site by both species. Two or three white eggs are laid on the bare wood at the bottom of cavity; they measure about 25.5 x 18.2 mm. 

Location

This bulbul is This is a very common bird in cultivated or openly-wooded country throughout the wet zone up to 4,000 feet, and in scattered colonies in parts of the dry zone.

Paduwan Bassa - Serendib Scops Owl

Identification

The new species is a small scops owl about 17 cm in length, with a short tail, and almost uniformly rufescent upperparts but for the presence of small black spots all over the body. The face is a little darker, and underparts paler than upper parts, with the belly becoming whitish. It has no distinct, “true” ear-tufts, but see below. The irides are orange-yellow in the male and yellow in the female and juvenile. The beak, legs and claws are whitish. The legs are feathered on the tibia and upper tarsi.

Behavior

At the time of the type description we knew that birds of a pair roosted fairly close together or well apart within their territory. Later we learnt that in some pairs the birds roost together or very close. A fledgling has been observed roosting with an adult male. Roosting height varies from about 1 to 2.5 m. A well-concealed place is chosen in dense vegetation in the undergrowth or just above it. Here the bird sits on an almost or entirely horizontal twig, usually close to dead leaves. Its size, shape and coloration blend it in perfectly with the surroundings, making it hard to detect. When an owl is in “alert mode” at its daytime roost, in reaction to possible danger in the vicinity, it quickly adopts a stance which disguises it as a short, upright, broken branch. It tightens body feathers, which are otherwise loose and relaxed, to acquire a narrower appearance. At the same time it adjusts the feathers of the facial disk, forehead and crown to give the appearance of the top of such a branch. This latter arrangement is adopted also by species of owl which have two obvious, separate ear-tufts, which are erected to enhance this effect. The Serendib Scops Owl, which does not possess ear-tufts, achieves a similar effect by compressing and flattening feathers on the forehead, forecrown and sides of the facial disk, and folding feather tracts on the forehead at the edges of the disk over the inner part of the eyes. This makes the top left and right edges of the disk stand out, with also the support of adjacent crown feathers, giving an impression of short ear-tufts. Another result is an obvious, broader and deeper V on the forehead, showing up more white, than in a bird in “relaxed mode”. At night the Serendib Scops Owl adopts this “pseudo-eartuft” arrangement only very rarely, according to our observations, probably because there is no significant advantage of such visual camouflage in the dark. It has been known that in similar situations species of owls lacking true ear-tufts adopt a camouflage pose which suggests the presence of small ear-tufts.

Location

Endemic to Sri Lanka, found thus far only in the southwest quarter of the island at Kitulgala, Kanneliya and Eratna-Gilimale Reserves, with its strongholds in the Sinharaja and Morapitiya-Runakanda reserves, which are contiguous.

Wali Kukula - The Ceylon Junglefowl

Identification

Size of a small, but not bantam, breed of domestic fowl. 

Behavior

Wali Kukula is a fairly common bird. It spends its life in forest or its outskirts, never venturing far from cover, though, especially in wet weather, it likes to frequent open places, such as roadsides or glades.The food of the Wali Kukula consists of grain, weed seeds, berries, various succulent leaves and buds, and a large proportion of small animals, such as crickets, centipedes and termites. When nillu flowers and seeds in up-country jungles, junglefowl migrate to these areas in large numbers to fatten on the abundant seed.

The main breeding season is in the first quarter of the year, but often a second clutch is laid in August-September, and breeding may go on throughout the year. The nest is often a shallow scrape in the ground, concealded by herbage, at the foot of a tree or beside a dead log. The eggs number two to four; they are creamy-white, some very finely peppered, other more boldly  but sparingly speckled with brown. They measure about 48 × 35 mm. 

Location

The Junglefowl is distributed throughout the Island, whenever jungle or dense scrub of any extent is to be found, but it is nowadays common only in the wilder parts of the dry zone.

Lanka Mudun Bora Demalichcha

Identification

About the size of the magpie robin, but with shorter tail.Sexes similar. It is a soberly coloured bird, brown with a darker brown cap, and the face, superclilium and all underparts pale rusty.

Behavior

A shy jungle-loving bird, it lives in pairs. The nest is a domed, outwardly untidy structure composed of dead leaves, skeleton leaves, dry grass, etc., placed on the ground among the same kind of objects, among the same kind of objects, among which it is practically impossible to distinguish unless, and until, the bird flies off at one's feet. It is often situated at the base of a tree or shrub and is always in deep forest. The two eggs are broad ovals, white or off-white and thickly speckled with some shade of brown. They measure about 22.2 X 16.2 mm. 

Location

It is found, wherever there is forest, throughout the island except perhaps in the driest parts of the Northern and Southern Provinces. It ascends the hills to at least 5,500 feet. 

Lanka Bata Etikukula

Identification

Slightly smaller than the Common Coucal, from which it may at once be distinguished by its leg, like-green beak; its wings, too, are much darker chestnut, and the sheen on the head and neck is purple, not blue. Sexes alike.

Behavior

A very shy and elusive bird, it is far better known by its calls than by sight but, wherever the wet-zone forests have been spared the axe, it is still fairly common; its range, however, is rapidly dwindling and as it shows no sign of being able to adjust itself to new conditions, there can be no doubt that its days will soon be numbered - with those of several ither endemic forest birds - unless wise foresight reserves extensive forest sanctuaries in the wet zone.  

Location

This coucal is found only in the forests of the wet zone, west, south-west and south of the main mountain massif, which it ascends to 2,500 feet, or perhaps higher

Sri Lanka Myna

The Sri Lanka Myna, Ceylon Myna or Sri Lanka Hill Myna is a myna, a member of the starling family. This bird is endemic to Sri Lanka. In Sri Lanka, this bird is known in many names including Sela lihiniya, Mal kawadiya, Kampatiya in Sinhala Language. The name Sela Lihiniya is often mentioned in poems and other similar literature and is quoted for its melodious calls. This bird appears in a 10 rupee Sri Lankan postal stamp.


Identification  

These 25 cm long birds have green-glossed black plumage, purple-tinged on the head and neck. There are large white wing patches, which are obvious in flight. The strong legs are bright yellow, and there are yellow wattles on the nape. The different shape and position of the wattles and the stouter orange-red bill distinguish this species from the Southern Hill Myna, which also occurs in Sri Lankan forests. 

Behaviour

It lives in scattered colonies, but it does not seem to be quite so gregarious as Salalihiniya (The Common Hill-Mynah), usually occurring in pairs. It loves high trees, and may be found in the heart of tall forests, as well as on estates and village gardens in their neighbourhood. It is a restless bird. The food consists of wild fruits such as banyan, bo and nuga figs, wild nutmegs, and sapu seeds. The breeding season is February-May and a secondary season in August-September. The nest is made in a cavity in a tree-bole or large branch. The two eggs are pale prussian blue, blotched with purplish brown. They measure about 33x25mm.

Locations 

This Grackle inhabits the forests and well-wooded country of the wet zone, ascending the hills, n the wetter districts of the south and west, to at least 6,000 feet. Occasionally it strays into the drier, eastern slopes of the main range, but it is essentially a bird of the wet-zone hills. 

                            

Black-throated Munia

This is a small passerine bird. This estrildid finch is a resident breeding bird in the hills of southwest India, the Eastern Ghats and Sri Lanka.

Identification

Smaller than the House Sparrow. Sexes alike, and the young are similar but duller and more uniformly coloured. The black face and throat, brown back, and pale pinkish-fawn patch on the side of the neck suffice to distinguish this from the other Sri Lankan Munias. 

Behaviour 

It associates usually in pairs or small parties, and travels about more than other munias, being often seen flying at a considerable height; the flight is undulating. The food consists of seeds and grain The breeding season lasts nearly all the year, but April-September seems to be the favourite period. The nest is a untidy ball of grass set in a densely-foliaged tree.The four or five eggs are pure white in colour and they measure about 16.5 x 11.1mm. 

Locations 

It is a mountain bird, common in most districts above 2,000 feet, but in the wet zone it descends as low as 200 feet. This munia frequent tea estates, gardens, etc., but many also be found in the forest and in mana-grass and lantana scrub. 

Pictures
                                                                         

 

Serendib Scops Owl

The Serendib Scops Owl (Otus thilohoffmanni) is the most recently discovered bird of Sri Lanka. The astonishing discovery of this tiny owl in 2001 in the southern rain forests of Sri Lanka stunned biologists around the world,  Thus, in 2001 it was confirmed that the owl appeared strikingly different from any other on the island or, indeed, anywhere in South Asia . It is the first new bird to be discovered in Sri Lanka since 1868, when the Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) Whistling Thrush Myophonus blighi was discovered. It is also the 27th endemic bird species for Sri Lanka. 

Identification 

The new species is a small scops owl about 17 cm in length, with a short tail, and almost uniformly rufescent upperparts but for the presence of small black spots all over the body. The face is a little darker, and underparts paler than upperparts, with the belly becoming whitish. It has no distinct, “true” ear-tufts, but see below. The irides are orange-yellow in the male and yellow in the female and juvenile. The beak, legs and claws are whitish. The legs are feathered on the tibia and upper tarsi. The vocalisation comprises a single note, pu’u’u, repeated at long intervals. Male and female call in the same pattern but in different keys.

Behaviour 

At the time of the type description we knew that birds of a pair roosted fairly close together or well apart within their territory. Later we learnt that in some pairs the birds roost together or very close. A fledgling has been observed roosting with an adult male. Roosting height varies from about 1 to 2.5 m. A well-concealed place is chosen in dense vegetation in the undergrowth or just above it. Here the bird sits on an almost or entirely horizontal twig, usually close to dead leaves. Its size, shape and coloration blend it in perfectly with the surroundings, making it hard to detect. When an owl is in “alert mode” at its daytime roost, in reaction to possible danger in the vicinity, it quickly adopts a stance which disguises it as a short, upright, broken branch. It tightens body feathers, which are otherwise loose and relaxed, to acquire a narrower appearance. At the same time it adjusts the feathers of the facial disk, forehead and crown to give the appearance of the top of such a branch. This latter arrangement is adopted also by species of owl which have two obvious, separate ear-tufts, which are erected to enhance this effect. The Serendib Scops Owl, which does not possess ear-tufts, achieves a similar effect by compressing and flattening feathers on the forehead, forecrown and sides of the facial disk, and folding feather tracts on the forehead at the edges of the disk over the inner part of the eyes. This makes the top left and right edges of the disk stand out, with also the support of adjacent crown feathers, giving an impression of short ear-tufts. Another result is an obvious, broader and deeper V on the forehead, showing up more white, than in a bird in “relaxed mode”. At night the Serendib Scops Owl adopts this “pseudo-eartuft” arrangement only very rarely, according to our observations, probably because there is no significant advantage of such visual camouflage in the dark. It has been known that in similar situations species of owls lacking true ear-tufts adopt a camouflage pose which suggests the presence of small ear-tufts.

Locations 

Endemic to Sri Lanka, found thus far only in the southwest quarter of the island at Kitulgala, Kanneliya and Eratna-Gilimale Reserves, with its strongholds in the Sinharaja and Morapitiya-Runakanda reserves.