Stats

Lifespan: 8-11 yrs
Size: Small
Diet: Omnivore
Activity: Diurnal
Social: Pair
Biome: Tropical dry forest
Range: South Asia
Movement: Flight
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Speed
Status: Common

About

A lively, crested songbird native to South Asia and now established across much of the world. Its name comes from the brilliant crimson patch of feathers tucked beneath its tail, which flashes like a stoplight as it flits between branches.

Life cycle

1.
egg
A small clutch of speckled eggs is incubated in a cup nest, turned and kept warm by the parent.
2.
hatchling
A pink, blind hatchling is fed by its parents in the nest, gaping its bill at every visit.
3.
juvenile
A feathered juvenile fledges from the nest, learning to fly and to forage close to its parents.
4.
adult
Fully grown with adult plumage and song.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Pycnonotidae
Genus: Pycnonotus
Species: Pycnonotus cafer