Bare-faced bulbul
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| Species: | P. hualon
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| Pycnonotus hualon Woxvold, Duckworth & Timmins, 2009
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The Bare-faced Bulbul (Pycnonotus hualon)[1] is a species of bulbul described from Laos in 2009. It is one of the very few Asian songbirds with a bald (featherless) face and is the first new species of bulbul to be described from Asia in over a century.[2]
Description
The mainly olive-green Bare-faced Bulbul is distinctive in having a bare pink face with blueish skin around the eyes. The species epithet hualon is from the Lao word for "bald-headed". The two specimens so far collected were around 20 cm in length and weighed 32-40 g. The breast and belly are fawn-grey, the uppersides olive and the throat is off-white.[1]
Habitat
The Bare-faced Bulbul is known only from the limestone karst region near Pha Lom in central Laos. The area is characterised by steep terrain with bare limestone and low (below 4m) deciduous trees and shrubs. It seems likely that the species is restricted entirely to this habitat, but the species may occur at other sites in Laos that have similar habitats. Observations of similar birds were made in 1995 at another site. Limestone karst habitat has been the site of several new endemics, including the unusual Laotian rock rat Laonastes aenigmamus.[1]
Behaviour
The Bare-faced Bulbul is mainly arboreal but sometimes perches on rocks on the steep hillsides. It is a conspicuous species, foraging during the day in pairs or as singles. Single birds tend to call regularly, and will link up with another before flying to a new area to forage. According to researchers its call is a "dry bubbly tweet". They have not been observed to join mixed-species feeding flocks. The breeding behaviour of this species has not yet been observed.[1]
Status and conservation
The Bare-faced Bulbul has not yet been assessed by the IUCN, in the paper describing the species it was suggested that it be listed as data deficient until further surveys of likely habitat were undertaken.[1] The limestone karst in which it lives is threatened by quarrying and habitat degradation caused by overgrazing.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f I.A. Woxvold, J.W. Duckworth, and R.J. Timmins (2009). "An unusual new bulbul (Passeriformes: Pycnonotidae) from the limestone karst of Lao PDR" (PDF). Forktail. 25: 1–12.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Bizarre Bald Bird Discovered In Asia, Science Daily, July 29, 2009