About the Indian Scimitar Babbler
The Indian scimitar babbler is an Old World babbler. It is found in peninsular India in a range of forest habitats. They are most often detected by their distinctive calls, which include an antiphonal duet by a pair of birds. They are often hard to see as they forage through dense vegetation. The long, curved yellow, scimitar-shaped bills give them their name. It has been treated in the past as a subspecies of the white-browed scimitar babbler which is found along the Himalayas but now separated into two species, the peninsular Indian species and the Sri Lanka scimitar babbler.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
ID tip
The most distinctive feature of this 22 cm long bird is the long down-curved yellow bill which is blackish at the base of the upper mandible. It has a striking head pattern, with a long white supercilium above a broad black band through the eye. The white throat and breast contrast with the dark greyish brown on the upperside and dark grey to black on most of the underside. The tail is broad, long and graduated. They have short, round wings and being weak fliers are rarely seen flying in the open.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
What the Indian Scimitar Babbler sounds like
Where the Indian Scimitar Babbler lives
When to see the Indian Scimitar Babbler
Peak activity in February · a variable species across most of its range
Easily confused with
Streak-breasted Scimitar BabblerPomatorhinus ruficollisThe streak-breasted scimitar babbler is a species of bird in the family Timaliidae.
White-browed Scimitar BabblerPomatorhinus schisticepsThe white-browed scimitar babbler is a species of bird in the family Timaliidae.
Sri Lanka Scimitar BabblerPomatorhinus melanurusThe Sri Lanka scimitar babbler or Ceylon scimitar babbler is an Old World babbler.
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