Bird Guide

Brown-headed Barbet vs Coppersmith Barbet

Brown-headed Barbet (Psilopogon zeylanicus)

Brown-headed Barbet

Psilopogon zeylanicus

Medium119 gForest

The adult has a streaked brown head, neck and breast, and a yellow eye patch. The rest of the plumage is green. It is 27 cm (11 in) long with a large head, short neck and short tail. Its call is a repetitive kutroo…kutroo…kutroo, but silent in the winter. Others take up the call when one starts.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Vihansith Kulatunga · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Mickey Wu · CC BY 4.0
Coppersmith Barbet (Psilopogon haemacephalus)

Coppersmith Barbet

Psilopogon haemacephalus

Small44 gWoodland

The coppersmith barbet is green with a red head, yellow cheeks and a yellow throat. Its underparts are streaked in grey and black. During the nesting season, the wear and tear on the feathers can cause the plumage of the upper back to appear bluish. It is 15–17 cm (5.9–6.7 in) long and weighs 30–52.6 g (1.06–1.86 oz). Voice: The call is a loud rather metallic tuk…tuk…tuk (or tunk), reminiscent of a copper sheet being beaten, giving the bird its name. Repeated monotonously for long periods, starting with a subdued tuk and building up to an even volume and tempo, the latter varying from 108 to 121 per minute and can continue with as many as 204 notes. They are silent and do not call in winter.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Jairam Vijayan · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Rainer Breitling · CC BY 4.0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Brown-headed Barbet and Coppersmith Barbet.