Long-billed Wren-Babbler - BirdForum Opus

Photo by James Eaton
Eaglenest WLS, Arunachal Pradesh, India, April 2011

Napothera malacoptila

Rimator malacoptilus

Identification

11-13cm. A small, almost tailless streaky brown babbler:

• Very long, slightly downcurving bill
• Brown crown, nape and head side with tiny buff shaft streaks and narrow black scaling
• Long brown dorsal feathering with long buff shaft streaks
• Plain fluffy rump
• Plain brown (chestnut in nominate, dark brown in other subspecies) upperwing and tail
• Buff chin and throat and dark brown moustachial streak and malar stripe
• Breast and belly brown with buff whitish shaft streaks

Sexes similar. Juveniles undescribed.

Distribution

Found from Sikkim east over Bhutan and northeast India to northern Burma and adjacent south China (Yunnan).
Rarely recorded in its range.

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species.
Has been considered conspecific with White-throated Wren-Babbler and Sumatran Wren-Babbler in the past.

Habitat

Broadleaf evergreen forest. At 900 - 2000m in the Indian Subcontinent.

Behaviour

Feeds on invertebrates.
Usually seen in pairs, skulking in undergrowth on or near the ground.
Breeding season from May to July in India. The nest is a loose untidy globe with a top entrance, made of leaves, grasses, roots, bracken fronds and weed stems. It's placed on the ground in a mass of dead leaves at the foot of a large tree. Lays 4 eggs.
Resident species.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. 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
3. Rasmussen, PC and JC Anderton. 2005. Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334672

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Long-billed Wren-Babbler. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Long-billed_Wren-Babbler

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