Scarlet Minivet
Pericrocotus flammeus
The Scarlet Minivet (Pericrocotus flammeus) is a uncommon cuckooshrik found in 8 countries, weighing about 23 g. The orange minivet is a brightly colored bird in the cuckooshrike family, Campephagidae.
About the Scarlet Minivet
The orange minivet is a brightly colored bird in the cuckooshrike family, Campephagidae. It is found all along the Western Ghats and west coast of India and Sri Lanka. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the scarlet minivet which is considered to have a wider distribution in eastern and northern India and South-east Asia. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. The orange minivet is a species resident in southern India and Sri Lanka, that feeds primarily on insects while foraging in mixed-species bird flocks or in small single-species groups.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
The orange minivet measures about 17 – 22 cm and weighs 19 – 24.5 g. Males are bright orange and black while females are largely yellow with a grey upperside. Males have a glossy black head, chin, throat and mantle and upper back. Lower back, rump and uppertail-coverts are orange-red. Underparts are largely bright orange-red, that makes it stand out in the surroundings. It can be distinguished from other Pericrocotus species by isolated red markings near tips of tertials and inner secondaries. Females have a yellow forehead and ashy-grey, lower back.
What the Scarlet Minivet sounds like
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in Hong Kong SAR China, Malaysia.
When to see it
Best months: January, February, March, April, May, July, August, September, October, November, December, with peak activity in February. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Scarlet Minivet?
- The orange minivet measures about 17 – 22 cm and weighs 19 – 24.5 g. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Scarlet Minivet?
- The Scarlet Minivet is a small sized bird weighing about 23 g.
- Where can you see a Scarlet Minivet?
- The Scarlet Minivet occurs in 8 countries, including India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam.
- What does a Scarlet Minivet sound like?
- You can listen to 3 field recordings of the Scarlet Minivet on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
- What birds look similar to a Scarlet Minivet?
- The Scarlet Minivet is most easily confused with the Grey-chinned Minivet, the Long-tailed Minivet and the Ashy Minivet.
- Is the Scarlet Minivet endangered?
- The Scarlet Minivet is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Scarlet Minivet for real
BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.
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