- Conostoma aemodium
Identification
27.5 - 28.5cm. The largest parrotbill.
- Plain vinous-brown plumage
- Rather long pale orange-yellow bill
- Dark face with pale yellow eyes and pale greyish forehead
- Rufescent-brown secondaries and wing-coverts
- Grey primaries and tail
Sexes similar, juveniles are slightly more rufescent above.
Distribution
Found from north India east along the Himalayas over Nepal, Bhutan and northeast India to adjacent Tibet. Disjunctly also in central China (Shaanxi, Gansu, Sichuan, Yunnan) and eastern part of northern Burma.
Generally scarce in its range.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[1].
As the genus name is also used for an insect some authorities propose a new genus name, Enendrozdovoma. However, this is not yet accepted by any of the World Checklists.
The scientific name is sometimes also spelled oemodium, the genus Conostama.
Habitat
Bamboo forest, open broadleaf forest and scrub. Found at 2700 - 3360m in the Himalayas, 2000 - 3000m in China. In winter also lower.
Behaviour
Usually seen in pairs or small groups, often together with laughingthrushes or other babblers in bird waves.
Diet
Feeds on green bamboo shoots, seeds, wild raspberries and insects. Forages mostly low or on the ground.
Breeding
Breeding season from May to July in India. The nest is a regular hemisperhical cup made of grasses and strips of bamboo leaves. It's placed in a bamboo clump. Lays 2 - 3 eggs.
Resident species with some minor local movements in winter.
Vocalisation
Great Parrotbill with Spotted Laughingthrush, Recorded by china guy, Sichuan, China, August 2011
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2013. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.8., with updates to August 2013. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- 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
- Rasmussen, PC and JC Anderton. 2005. Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334672
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Great Parrotbill. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 23 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Great_Parrotbill
