Blue-faced Malkoha vs Chestnut-breasted Malkoha

Blue-faced Malkoha

Phaenicophaeus viridirostris

Medium67 gWoodland

A largish species at 39 cm, its back and head are dark grey with an oily green or blue gloss, and the dark tail has graduated feathers tipped with white. The belly is pale ochre to grey. The feathers of the chin and throat are branched (unlike in Phaenicophaeus tristis) with the branched tips being pointed and slightly yellowish giving the throat a streaked and spiny appearance. There is a large blue patch around the eye, with a white fringed red iris, and the bill is apple green. The sexes are indistinguishable by external appearance.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Rison Thumboor from Thrissur, India · CC BY 2.0

Chestnut-breasted Malkoha

Phaenicophaeus curvirostris

Medium154 gForest

Measuring 42–49 cm (17–19 in) in length, the chestnut-breasted malkoha has a large, curved, pale yellow upper mandible and darker red or black lower mandible, and a bare red patch of rough skin around the eye. The head is grey and wings are dark green fading to blue with age. Its underparts and rump are chestnut, and feet are dark grey. Little sexual dimorphism is seen, as the male and female are similar in plumage, although the male has a pale blue iris and the female yellow.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Mike Prince from Bangalore, India · CC BY 2.0

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Blue-faced Malkoha and Chestnut-breasted Malkoha.