Pycnonotus zeylanicus

(Gmelin, 1789)

Vernacular names
English : Straw-headed bulbul
French : Bulbul à tête jaune

Classification
Class : Aves
Order : Passeriformes
Family : Pycnonotidae
Notes : No subspecies known

Identification
The species can reach 29 cm in length for a weight of 93 g. Unmistakable. Large black bill. Plumage golden olive-brown on wings and tail, dull brown with white streaks on breast. Head straw-orange with black stripes.

Range and habitat
The species occurs in South-east Asia, from south Thailand and Myanmar to Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra and Java. Now extinct in most of its range. Lives in forested edges of rivers and streams, rarely plantations, up to 1500 m.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : CRITICALLY ENDANGERED
CITES : Appendix II (uplisting to Appendix I planned for 2023)
Status : The species used to be abundant in its range but has disappeared from parts of Indonesia and Thailand because of intense trapping for trade.
Ex-Situ Programs : EEP in Europe

Observation

 

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