
Fig 1 : Fire-tufted Barbet

Fig 2 : Fire-tufted Barbet

Fig 3 : Red-crowned Barbet

Fig 4 : Black-browed Barbet

Fig 5 : Coppersmith Barbet

Fig 6 : Coppersmith Barbet

Fig 7 : Lineated Barbet
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The Asian Barbets (family : Megalaimidae) are a
diverse group of mainly forest-dwelling birds which play an important role
in seed dispersal in Southeast Asia's forests.
These are attractive, plump, stocky birds with short tails, large heads and
heavy, parrot-like bills. Their colouration comprises various shades of
green on the body, with multicoloured heads and collars of red, yellow, blue
and black. Many species have bristles above the base of the bill, for
example the Fire-tufted Barbet has distinctive red tufts (Fig 1). The various
species range in size from around 17 cm to 33 cm
These birds generally inhabit shady lowland and montane forests : their
calls can be heard from a great distance. Like woodpeckers, their
nests are excavated in dead trees. Some species, for example the Fire-tufted
Barbet and Black-browed Barbet, are montane specialists.
They have a prodigious appetite for fruits, berries and figs, and can be
most easily spotted gorging themselves at fruiting trees, before flying
elsewhere to digest their food, and either regurgitate the seeds or pass
them in their faeces. Insects also form a significant part of their diet,
and small vertebrates such as arboreal lizards are sometimes taken.
There are 26 species of Asian Barbet, of which 21 occur in Southeast Asia; the other 5 occur mainly in the Indian Subcontinent.
Figs 1 and 2:
Fire-tufted
Barbet
Psilopogon pyrolophus
Location : Fraser's Hill, Peninsular Malaysia
Habitat : Lower montane, primary rainforest
Notes : Feeding on a fruiting fig tree - the birds carefully select the ripest
figs i.e. those with an orange colour. This species has an unusual call
which is easily mistaken for the buzzing of a cicada.
Fig 3 :
Red-crowned Barbet
Psilopogon rafflesii
Location : Central forests, Singapore
Habitat : Mature lowland secondary forest
Notes : Taking a break from excavating a nesting hole in a dead, streamside
tree.
Fig 4 :
Black-browed
Barbet
Psilopogon oorti
Location : Fraser's Hill, Peninsular Malaysia
Habitat : Lower montane, primary rainforest
Notes : As well as fruits and figs, barbets also consume insect prey, like
this large beetle.
Figs 5 and 6 :
Coppersmith Barbet
Psilopogon haemacephalus
Location : Portsdown, Singapore
Habitat : Wooded, residential area.
Notes :
Fig 5 : The small (17 cm) Coppersmith Barbet has adapted to open habitat.
Males call from a high perch to proclaim their territory - the call is a
repetitive 'tok, tok'.
Fig 6 : Feeding on ripe figs of
Ficus benjamina
(= Banyan).
Fig 7 :
Lineated
Barbet
Psilopogon lineatus
Location : Springleaf, Singapore
Habitat : Open country, parkland
Notes : Feeding on the fruit of Spanish Cherry Mimusops elengi.
The Lineated Barbet is a native of Bangladesh and West Bengal, but it is now
a well-established, introduced species found in
secondary, open woodland in Singapore.
Fig 8 :
Blue-eared
Barbet
Psilopogon cyanotis
Location : Kaeng Krachan, Phetchaburi, Thailand
Habitat : Lowland forest
Notes : Seen excavating a new hole in a dead tree. |