Coppersmith barbet (Megalaima haemacephala) complete detail

Coppersmith barbet (Megalaima haemacephala) complete detail – updated. Description and classification of Coppersmith barbet (Megalaima haemacephala) Chhota vasant-Tuktukiya. Habit and habitat of Coppersmith barbet. They prefer gardens, groves and sparse woodland.

Coppersmith barbet has large head, large head is very colorful. Forehead is red. Crown and nape are green. It has yellow patches above and below the eye. Coppersmith Barbet feed on various fruits such as figs, berries and mangoes and petals of flowers, but occasionally, it also consumes insects. 

Tail is short and triangular, truncated tail is distinctively triangular in flight. The red forehead, yellow eye-ring and throat patch with streaked underside and green upper parts. Bill is stout and dark, bordered at base with conspicuous bristles. Eyes are brown. Neck is short. Legs and feet are pinkish-red. Both sexes are similar, but female has duller red colors on head and breast…………..

Coppersmith Barbet seen singly or in small groups. Nesting and breeding season is mainly October to April. Both male and female excavate the nest on the underside of a narrow horizontal branch, soft or dead wood, they modify and clear the nest cavity during the nesting period. Eggs 2 – 4, white, glossless. Both sexes incubate the eggs. Incubation period is between 13 to 16 days. Young fledge at about 36 days of age. Parental care stops at fledging…………..

Click here to view State wise list of Indian state birds (symbols) – updated

Distinctive Identification

Coppersmith barbet is a small, plump and beautiful bird. Size between 15 cm. to 18 cm. and weigh between 30 to 50 g. feathers are bright green, but they have yellow areas around their eyes and necks, and bright red feathers on their heads and chests. Upper parts are grass green and underparts yellowish-green, diffusely streaked with darker green.

Coppersmith barbet has large head, large head is very colorful. Forehead is red. Crown and nape are green. It has yellow patches above and below the eye. Chin and throat are yellow. Blend black color separates the green color from the others on the head.

Tail is short and triangular, truncated tail is distinctively triangular in flight. The red forehead, yellow eye-ring and throat patch with streaked underside and green upper parts.

Bill is stout and dark, bordered at base with conspicuous bristles. Eyes are brown. Neck is short. Legs and feet are pinkish-red. Both sexes are similar, but female has duller red colors on head and breast.

Classification

Common Name – Coppersmith barbeta

Local Name – Chhota vasant/Tuktukiya

Zoological Name – Megalaima haemacephala

Kingdom – Animalia

Phylum – Chordata

Class – Aves

Order – Piciformes

Family – Megalaimidae

Genus – Megalaima

Conservational Status – Schedule – IV, according to wildlife (Protection) act, 1972 and classified as Least Concern (LC) by the IUCN.

Distribution

Coppersmith Barbet likes open wooded country and urban gardens and avoiding dense forest. They found in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka to SW China, Malaysia, Sumatra and the Philippines.

Habit and habitat

Commonly found in deciduous forests, open woodlands, countries with thickets, urban parks and in mangroves’ edges. Coppersmith barbet prefer gardens, groves and sparse woodland. Habitats with trees having dead wood suitable for excavation is said to be important. These birds nest and roost in cavities.

Coppersmith Barbet seen singly or in small groups, sometime in pairs. Flight of Coppersmith Barbet is straight, with rapid flaps.

Coppersmith Barbet feed on various fruits such as figs, berries and mangoes and petals of flowers, but occasionally, it also consumes insects.

Call is a loud rather metallic tuk…tuk…tuk…tuh or tunk…. tunk. Nesting and breeding season is mainly October to April.

Click here to view State wise list of Indian state animals (symbols) – updated

Both male and female excavate the nest on the underside of a narrow horizontal branch, soft or dead wood, they modify and clear the nest cavity during the nesting period.

Eggs 2 – 4, white, glossless. Both sexes incubate the eggs. Incubation period is between 13 to 16 days. Young fledged at about 36 days of age. Parental care stops at fledging.