Brown-eared Bulbul
Hypsipetes amaurotis
A large grayish songbird that shows considerable plumage variation throughout its range. Regularly found flocking in forested habitats as well as more open environments such as farmland and cities, where its loud vocalizations, long tail, and undulating flight make it conspicuous and distinctive. The Taiwan subspecies (harteri) is gray above, pale below, with chestnut extending from cheek to underparts, where it extends down the belly in streaks. Varied calls are loud and shrill.
Identification
Reaching a length of about 28 cm (11 in), brown-eared bulbuls are grayish-brown, with brown cheeks (the "brown ears" of the common name) and a long tail. While they prefer forested areas, they readily adapt to urban and rural environments, and their noisy squeaking calls are a familiar sound in most areas of Japan. One author described the song of the brown-eared bulbul as "one of the most unattractive noises made by any bird".
Taxonomy
The brown-eared bulbul was originally described in the genus Turdus. Later, some authorities placed it in the genus Ixos and then the genus Microscelis, before being re-classified to Hypsipetes in 2010. Alternate names for the brown-eared bulbul include the Asian brown-eared bulbul, chestnut-eared bulbul, and Eurasian brown-eared bulbul.<p>Twelve subspecies are currently recognized:
- Scientific name
- Hypsipetes amaurotis
- Authority
- (Temminck, 1830)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Pycnonotidae
- Genus
- Hypsipetes
Range and habitat
The brown-eared bulbul is common in a very large range that includes the Russian Far East (including Sakhalin), northeastern China, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan, south to Taiwan and the Babuyan and Batanes island chains in the north of the Philippines.<p>Historically, brown-eared bulbuls were migratory birds moving to the southern parts of their range in winter, but they have taken advantage of changes in crops and farming practices in recent decades to overwinter in areas farther north than previously possible. Most brown-eared bulbuls still move south in winter, often forming huge flocks during migration. They are considered agricultural pests in some areas of Japan where they may invade orchards and damage crops such as cabbages, cauliflowers and spinach.
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Around five eggs are laid by the female, which then incubates them. Brown-eared bulbuls are frequently parasitized by cuckoos, whose chicks will push bulbul eggs and chicks out of the nest.<p>In summer, brown-eared bulbuls primarily feed on insects, while they mostly take fruits and seeds in the fall and winter. At this time, they also feed on the nectar from Camellia flowers, becoming dusted with yellow pollen in the process. In this way they help to pollinate the flowers at a time of year when there are few insect pollinators around.
Conservation
- Population trend
- rising
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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