Bird Guide

Black-crested Bulbul vs Yellow-browed Bulbul

Black-crested Bulbul (Rubigula flaviventris)

Black-crested Bulbul

Rubigula flaviventris

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The black-crested bulbul is 18.5–19.5 cm in length. The head is black with a distinct crest and a yellow iris, while the rest of its body is greenish yellow above and yellow below, and a greenish-black tail. The bill and the feet are black. In the subspecies R. f. johnsoni, the throat is red. Both the male and female are similar in plumage; young birds are slightly duller.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: (c) Julien Renoult, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Julien Renoult · cc-by
Yellow-browed Bulbul (Acritillas indica)

Yellow-browed Bulbul

Acritillas indica

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This bulbul is about 20 cm (7.9 in) long, lacks a crest and has the upperparts olive-green with a prominent yellow brow and goggle with the underparts being all yellow. The sexes do not differ in plumage. The bill is black and the iris is reddish brown. The population in the northern Western Ghats (ssp. icterica) is paler yellow than the populations further south (ssp. indica). A somewhat disjunct population is found in the Eastern Ghats. Southwestern Sri Lankan populations (ssp. gugliemi) are greener while the northern populations are included in the nominate subspecies.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Yellow-browed Bulbul
Recorded by Jairam Vijayan · Call, song · Payyavoor, Kannur, Kerala, India · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Vaishak Kallore (Vaishak Kallore) · CC BY 3.0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Black-crested Bulbul and Yellow-browed Bulbul.