Sri Lanka Yellow-Eared Bulbul

Pycnonotus penicillatus

Endemic to Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Yellow-eared bulbul

This bird considered as one of the five montane endemic birds in Sri Lanka. You can specially spot this bird in Knuckles Mountain Range, Horton Plains National park, Peak wilderness sanctuary and hill areas in Sinharaja Forest Reserve. Not a shy bird who visits home gardens specially in Nuwara Eliya.

Main features

20 cm.

Dark yellow-green upperparts. Yellow below . Chin white. Head and bill black. Yellow ear tuft above and slightly behind eye. White line from nostril passes over eye as supercilium.

Voice

An even-tempo, energetic series of 2-7 identical, explosive, ringing, sibilant, upturned whipcracks SWINk!– SWINk!– SWINk!; in alarm a low crr,crr (H) – Frequently uttering a low, warning note crr, crr. Another note…is a loud, but sweet toned whistle wheet wit wit, usually uttered in flight. (HA) A loud whistling wheet wit wit , a chittering call when feeding, and a krr krr.. anxiety call.

Breeding

February-May, and again in August-October. Nest – open, a large cup-shaped nest made with fibers, small twigs, and mosses in a fork or branch. Clutch 2. Eggs are rose color with reddish brownish patches and marks on the broad side, measuring 23×17 mm.

Habitat

The yellow eared-bulbul is endemic to Sri Lanka and is the least common of the bulbuls found in Sri Lanka. This is a bird of jungle and wooded farmland. Despite its restricted range, it is quite readily found at sites such as Horton Plains, Piduruthalagala peak, Moonplains and Victoria Park in Nuwara Eliya and has been frequently sighted in rocky hills.

Habit

It calls when taking off, and is associated with small groups.

Source –  Birds of Sri Lanka – An illustrated guide by Sarath Kotagama & Gamini Ratnaweera -2017

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow-eared_bulbul