Notes on the field identification of the bulbuls (Pycnonotidae) of Upper Guinea (part 1)

7 Pages·1994·3.7 MB·

by  Lincoln D C Fishpool

Notes on the field identification of the bulbuls
(Pycnonotidae) of Upper Guinea
Lincoln D. C. FishpooP Ron DemeyP GaryAllporP andP. V. Haymanc
, , ,
Part The Genera Criniger Bleda and Andropadus
I:
,
Resume:Desnotescomparativessontpresenteessurl’identificationsurleterraindesbulbulsdelaHaute
Guinee, basee sur les caracteres-clef du plumage et des parties denudees, le comportement, les
vocalisations et les preferences d’habitat. Les imprecisions relevees dans la litterature actuellement
disponiblesontindiquees.
S ome 25 species of bulbul (Pycnonotidae) have attempting to learn calls for such a large number of
beenrecordedfromtheUpperGuinea regionof species is unrealistic. Bulbuls are often silent, even
West Africa, the area west of the Dahomey Gap in occasionally Andropadus virens. Hence, although
Benin, wherethe savanna extendstothe coast. With calls are discussed in the following notes, they are
theexceptionoftheCommonBulbulandtheYellow- treatedmostlyasadjunctstothemorphologicalcharac-
throatedLeaflove,allspeciesareassociatedwithforest tersdescribed. Thistreatmentbeliestheirimportance.
habitat,wheretheyformaconspicuouscomponentof Ofthe bulbuls that occur in the region, we have
theavifauna,intermsofspeciesdiversityandnumeri- fieldexperienceofallbutone. ThisistheLiberianor
calabundance. Theycompriseahomogeneousgroup Spot-winged Greenbul Phyllastrephus leucolepis, re-
inshape,sizeand,inparticular,colour. Theyare,with centlydescribedfromeasternLiberia3. Onthebasisof
someexceptions,sombrelyandmonotonouslydressed thepublisheddescription,itissufficientlydistinct(see
invariouscombinationsofdullgreens,browns,greys PartII)thatitsidentificationshouldpresentfewprob-
andyellows,toallofwhichthewordolivecanusually lems for anyone luckyenough to see it. There is, in
be prefixed, indicatingthedegreetowhichthesecol- addition, an old record of the Cameroon Montane
oursinter-grade. Oneconsequenceofthisisthatthey Greenbul Andropadus montanus from the Ghana-
have hitherto been poorly served by illustrations in Togoborderbutthisisnowthoughttobeanerror4and
handbooks and fieldguides. Their habitat and often we do not consider it further. The Common Bulbul
retiring habits have meant that familiarity with their Pycnonotus barhatus, is so well known as not to
formandpostureishardwonwhiletheiruniformityof require comment.
colour has, until recently, endeared them to neither Fortheremainder, briefnotesaregivenfordistri-
artistnorpublisher. Moreover,pastillustrationsmade bution, habitatpreferences, distinguishingfeatures of
from skins have often missed subtle differences in plumage,barepartsandbehaviourtogetherwithprin-
plumage characters between species, while soft part cipalfeaturesofsongandcall. Noattemptismadeto
colours,whichcanbevividinlife,areusuallydepicted give full descriptions ofplumage etc; these are to be
asbeingdrab. TherecentpublicationofVolumeIVof foundinthestandardworks1'5'6. Table 1 (toappearin
TheBirdsofAfrica' hasimprovedthesituation. There Part II) summarizes aspects of the distribution and
are, however, a numberofinaccuracies in thatwork, behaviourofeachspecies. Itisstressedthatthesenotes
someofwhichareindicatedinthefollowingaccount. applytothebulbulsoftheUpperGuinearegiononly,
We believe that field identification ofbulbuls, in hereusedtoincludenotonlytheforestzoneofwestern
Upper Guinea at least, is much easier than currently Togo, Ghana, Coted’Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone and
available texts suggest. We hope that these notes, Guinea but extending as far north as Senegambia,
togetherwiththe excellentaccompanyingnewplates southern Mali and southern Burkina Faso. In many
byMarkAndrews, demonstratethis. casesconspecificsfromtheLowerGuineaforests(east-
Thispaperconcentratesonvisualfieldcharacters. wardsfromNigeria)aresubspecificallydistinct, conse-
There is no denying, however, that the surest and quently, the featuresdescribedheremaynotapply.
quickestwayfortheidentificationofsomebulbulsisby ScientificandEnglishnamesaretakenfromKeith
call;thepublishedrecordingsbyChappuis2ofmostof etal1 althoughcommonlyusedEnglishalternativesof
thespeciesdiscussed hereare invaluable. Werecog- somearegiveninparenthesis. Thespeciescoveredin
nisethatforpeople makingshorttripstoWestAfrica, thispaperare:
32-BullABC Vol 1 No 1 Identification ofbulbuls PtI: Fishpool etal.
) )
1 Criniger barbatus arefairlyvocalbuttendtoberathershy. Mixedparties
WesternBearded(Bearded) Greenbul maycontainallthreeCrinigerspecies. Theeasiestway
2 Criniger calurus todistinguishbetweenthemisbycomparisonofcol-
Red-tailed(White-bearded) Greenbul oursoftheheadandunderparts. Crinigerbarbatushas
3 Crinigerolivaceus Yellow-bearded anolive-brownhead,yellowthroat,amottledgreyand
(Yellow-throatedOlive) Greenbul olive breastanda dirty olive-yellowbelly; C. calurus
4 Bledacanicapilla Grey-headed Bristlebill has a grey head, white throat and yellow breast and
5 Bledasyndactyla belly, while C. olivaceus has an olive green head
Red-tailedBristlebill(Bristlebill concolorouswiththeupperparts,brightyellowthroat
andolive-greenbreastandflanks,mergingtoyellowish
6 Bledaeximia Green-tailedBristlebill
onthebelly.
7 Andropadusgracilirostris
Slender-billedGreenbul 1. Criniger barbatus Western Bearded Greenbul
8 Andropadus latirostris (BeardedGreenbul). Thisisthelargestspeciesofthe
Yellow-whiskered Greenbul genus. Thethroatfeathersareconspicuousyellowand
9 Andropadusvirens Little Greenbul clearlycontrastwiththe restofthe plumage which is
10 Andropadus curvirostris mainly a uniform dull olive-green except the central
Plain(Cameroon Sombre)Greenbul breast,napeandmantlewheresomegreyismixedwith
the olive-green, apparent at close range. The grey
11 Andropadusgracilis Little GreyGreenbul
feathers of the breast, in particular, have obviously
12 Andropadusansorgei Ansorge’s Greenbul
pale, almostwhiteshafts, givinga ratheruntidy, mot-
13 Phyllastrephusicterinus Icterine Greenbul tledappearance. Thesefeaturesareimportantinsepa-
14 Phyllastrephusalbigularis rating C. barbatusfrom C. olivaceus,whichalsohasa
White-throatedGreenbul tuftedyellowthroat; thebreastandbellyofolivaceus
15 Phyllastrephusbaumanni Baumann’s Greenbul are,however,awarmolive-green,sharplydemarcated
16 Phyllastrephus leucolepis fromthethroat. C. olivaceusdiffers from C. barbatus
Liberian(Spot-winged) Greenbul in other ways; it generally appears much brighter,
17 Chlorocichla simplex lackingentirelythegreytonesofbarbatus,itisconsid-
Simple Greenbul(Simple Leaflove) erably smaller and has a small area ofbare blue skin
18 Chlorocichlaflavicollis aroundtheeye(notshownintheplateinKeithetal))
Yellow-throatedLeaflove which barbatus lacks, although these are less good
fieldmarkswhenbirdsareseenfleetingly. Thethroat
19 Pyrrhurusscandens Leaflove
feathers of C. olivaceusare also less often puffed out
20 Thescelocichla leucopleura andevenwhenthey are, look somewhatshorter. C.
Swamp Palm Greenbul
barbatusis generallyvery common and draws atten-
21 Calyptocichlaserina Golden(Serine) Greenbul tionto its presence by its frequent clear, far-carrying,
22 Ixonotusguttatus SpottedGreenbul disyllabicwhistle,thefirstnoteshortandflatintone,the
23 Baeopogon indicator Honeyguide Greenbul secondmoresustainedandrising in inflectionbefore
24 Nicatorchloris WesternNicator dyingaway. C. barbatusattendsantcolumns.
This paper is published in two parts; Part I deals foreIstto-cscauvrasnnfarommosTaoigcoztoonSeise.rraLeoneintheforestand
withthegeneraCriniger,BledaandAndropadus. The
remainderwillbecoveredinPartII. 2. CrinigercalurusRed-tailed(White-bearded)Green-
bul. Almostascommonasthepreviousspecies,often
Species notes occurringwithit. Itisamuchmorehandsomespecies
Criniger- Bearded greenbuls (Plate thanmostillustrationssuggest. Themostobviousfield
1
The genus Crinigercomprises three species readily characters are the pure white ‘beard’ which is very
separatedfromotherbulbuls. Diagnostically,allhave conspicuous, and contrasts strongly with the grey of
prominentlytuftedthroatfeatherswhicharefrequently therestoftheheadandthebrightyellowofthecentral
puffedout(hencethecommonnameofbeardedbul- breastandbelly. Thereisalsoaconspicuous,blue-grey
buls) and which make obvious field marks. All are patchofbareskinaroundtheeye(Plate 1).Thisisnot
species of closed forest and inhabit the lower and showninmostillustrations,includingtheplateinKeith
middle strata. Theyare frequent members ofmixed- etal.1,althoughitisdepictedinthelinedrawingonp.
speciesparties,usuallyoccurinpairsorsmallgroups, 360ofthatwork. Theremainderofthe plumage, the
back, mantle, wings and flanks is, like C.
Identification ofbulbulsPt/.- Fishpoolet al. BullABC Vol 1 No 1 -33
barbatus,dullolive-green.Theuppertailisalsoolive- 4. BledacanicapillaGrey-headedBristlebill. Thebest
greenexceptforarufousstripedownthecentreofeach fieldmarksofthisspeciesaretheslategreyheadwith
featherbutthisisnotafieldcharacter. paler, whitish feathering on the lores, yellow throat
ItisslightlysmallerthanC.barbatusand,perhaps, slightlypalerthantherestoftheunderpartsandwedge-
is only likely to be confusedwith Bleda canicapilla shapedyellowtipstotheolive-green,outerthreepairs
,
since they are of similar size, have grey heads and oftailfeathers. Thisspecieslacksthebareperi-orbital
yellowunderparts. However,B.canicapillalacksthe skin (and white ‘beard’) of the superficially similar
white beardand blue-greyeye-ringof C. calunis. C. Crinigercalurus. As a result, it lacks the ‘wide-eyed’
3c.alurusisvocal,thecommonestcallbeingacheerful, appearanceofC.calurus. Note,however,thatboththe
rising ‘chup-chup-chwirulup’, somewhat reminiscent otherBledaspeciesdohavebareskinaroundtheeye.
oftheCommonBulbul. Thisspeciesisperhapstheleasttimidofthegenus
It occurs in the forest and forest-savanna mosaic butthatdoesnotimplythatitisconfiding;theyellow
zonesfromTogotosouthernSenegal. tailtipsareperhapsthemostfrequentlyseencharacter!
Its varied vocabulary includes a farcarrying and dis-
CrinigerolivaceusYellow-bearded(Yellow-throated
tinctivesongwithacheerful,ringingquality,consisting
Olive) Greenbul. This is the rarest ofthe genus and ofaloudinitialnotefollowedbyabriefpauseandthen
seems to be the most restricted to high forest, appar-
seriesofnotesinadescendingscale. Othercharacter-
entlyabsent fromgallery forest, wherethe otherspe- isticloudnotes,alsooftenrepeatedinlongseries,may
ciesoccur,andfromdegradedsecondaryforest. There
are, however, records of this species from SW Mali, berenderedas ‘CHEEup’ or‘CHRIup’.
suggestingthat, there at least, it occurs in less humid 5. Bledasyndactyla Red-tailedBristlebill(Bristlebill).
forest. Itis the smallestofthe three andsuperficially Boththisspeciesandtherestarenoticeablylargerthan
resembles C. barbatus todistinguishthemseeabove. B. canicapilla. B. syndactyla is readily identifiable
;
Like C. calurusit has an eye-ring ofbare blue skin, whenseenwell. Thesulphur-yellowunderparts,espe-
thoughthisislessconspicuousthanthatofcalurus. C. ciallybrightonthe throat, contraststrikinglywiththe
olivaceus has a distinctive behavioural trait; it often olive-brown upperparts and head, while the tail is
clingstotreetrunkswhileforaging, ratherintheman- bright rufous. There is a conspicuous patch ofbare
nerofawoodpeckerandsomeforestweavers,theonly blue skin in front, above and behind the eye. B.
greenbul inUpperGuineatodoso. Unlikethe other syndactylais a handsome species, very partial to ant
Crinigerspecies, olivaceusisaratherquietandunob- columns, which often provide the best opportunities
trusivebird. Itscallissimilarinstructuretobutlacksthe for seeing it well. There are noyellowtips to its tail
sprightlyqualityofC.calurus. Itconsistsofthreeshort, feathers. Italsohasacharacteristicsongcomprisinga
harshsyllables,utteredinthesame,relativelylowpitch series of pure, vibrant syllables of the same pitch -
‘whut-chruw-chruw’, with the emphasis on the last ‘turrruuu turrruuu turrruuu’. Another form of song
syllable. For separation from Icterine Greenbul, see comprises a seriesofnotes descending in pitch. The
thatspecies. callsofB.syndactylaarelesspenetratingthanthoseof
ThisspeciesispatchilydistributedfromGhanato B. canicapilla andalways have a tremulous, ‘melan-
,
Guinea and Sierra Leone. There is also a nineteenth cholic’qualitytothem.
century recordfromsouthernSenegal7. It is found in the forest zone fromTogo to Sierra
Leone.
Bleda - Bristlebills (Plate 1)
TheBristlebillsformanotherdistinctivetrioofspecies. 6. Bledaeximia Green-tailedBristlebill. Thevernacu-
Theypresentfewidentificationproblems. Allarelarge lar name for this species not particularly appropriate
speciesoftheforestundergrowth,wheretheyregularly sincealthoughthetailisgreen,withtheyellowtipsto
attendantcolumns. Theyareskulkersand fairlyshy. the three outer pairs of tail feathers, it shares these
Ofthethree,B.canicapillaisbyfarthemostcommon featureswiththe B. canicapilla. However, thegreen
andwidespread,occurringthroughouttheregion,even
in gallery forest in Guinea savanna, in vocal family
Plate1
parties. The othertwo species are more restricted to
closedforest,arelesscommon(particularlyB.eximia), Top: CrinigerbarbatusQeh), C.calurusiright);
more discreet and are usually seen singlyor in pairs, Centre: C.olivaceusdeh), Bledacanicapilla(right);
except at large ant columns, where all three species
Bottom: B.syndactyladeft), B.eximiainghl).
maybe foundtogether.
Nottoscale.(S.MarkAndrews)
34 -BullABC Vol 1 No 1 Identification ofbulbuls PtI: Fishpoolet al.

}
head, concolorous with the rest of the upperparts, 7. Andropadusgracilirostris Slender-billedGreenbul.
distinguishes it from its congeners. It appears con- Thisspeciesiseasytoidentify.ItistheonlyAndropadus
spicuously greener than B. canicapilla in the field. species largelyrestrictedto the canopyandoccurs in
B.eximiahas,likethepreviousspecies,anareaofbare mostforesttypes. Itoccursthroughouttheregioninthe
blue skin in front, above and behindthe eye (contra forestandforest-savannamosaiczones. Itisconspicu-
Hall&Moreau8). This isdepicted in Plate 1 but is not ously two-toned, with olive-brown upperparts con-
otherwise shown in illustrations, eg Keith et al1. In trastingwithpalegreyunderparts,thedivisionrunning
addition,noneoftheindividualswehaveseenhadthe fromthelineofthebilltothetail. Thisfeatureisobvious
conspicuousyelloweyeshownintheplateinKeithet inthefield. Ingoodlighttheredeyesareanadditional
al1. It is the rarest ofthe three and vocally the most character. Thecallisadistinctive,drawnout‘tseeeu’,
discreet. Thesong,however,resemblessomewhatthat frequently uttered. There is also a much more rarely
ofB. syndactyla in its descending pitch and has the heard song consisting of four or five whistled notes
sametremulous‘lisping’quality. ‘whee-ti-twheew-ti-twhee’ orslightvariationthereon.
GhanB.aetoxiSmieiraraisLeroenset.ricted to the forest zone from 8. Andropaduslatirostris Yellow-whiskered Green-
bul. Probablythecommonestgreenbulofprimaryand
Andropadus (Plate 2) well-developedsecondaryforest. 11isdistributedwidely
ItiswiththesixmembersofthegenusAndropadusthat in the forest and forest-savanna mosaic zones from
most identification problems occur. Four species in TogotoSierraLeone,withanapparentlydisjunctpopu-
particularseemtolackanysatisfactoryfieldcharacters lationinsouthernSenegal. Abirdofthemiddlestrata
which sings ceaselessly for long periods. The song
otherthancall. Whilethesituationisnotasbadasfield
guides seem to imply, it is acknowledged that the consistsofamonotonousseriesofadozenofso‘chruc’
notes, slightlyincreasinginvolume.
following notes are not going to enable a positive
identificationto be made ofeveryAndropadusseen. Themostobviousfieldcharacterofthisspeciesis
Given reasonable views of cooperative birds, espe- theyellowmalarstripes. Thesearelargeandstrikingon
maturebirds,lesssoonimmaturesalthoughvestigesof
ciallyifvocal, allspeciescan, however, beidentified.
ThegenusAndropaduscomprisesmainlyuniform them can usually be made out. The otherdistinctive
olivegreenbirdswhich,withPhyllastrephus,havethe characternotmentionedinmosttextsisthatA.latiros-
mostfeaturelessplumageofallbulbuls. Theyoccurin trisistheonlyAndropadustohaveorange-oryellow-
a wide variety of forest habitats from high forest to brownlegs. ManyA.virenshavepalelegsbutrarelyas
overgrown farm scrub, and are amongst the most brightaslatirostris. OtherAndropadushavedarklegs.
commonly encountered ofbulbuls. They are essen- TheremainingfourspeciesofAndropadusaxethe
tiallyfrugivores andare often seen feeding atfruiting mostdifficultofallgreenbulsto identify. The crucial
lianesetc. Indeed,thisisoftenthebestwaytoseethem startingpointisthatwhileA.curvirostrisandA. virens
as, withthepartialexceptionofA. latirostris theyare showuniformplumagesthroughout,A.gracilisandA.
,
skulkers. As frugivores, they are rarely members of ansorgei have grey heads which contrast subtly but
mixedbirdparties, althoughexceptionsdooccur. All perceptiblywiththebodyplumage. Thesmallsizeof
speciesareusuallyseensinglyorinpairsexceptwhen thesetwo, emphasizedbyKeithetal asafieldchar-
attractedtoplants in fruit, althoughA.gracilisandA. actercanbelessapparentthantheyimply.
ansorgeisometimes occur in family parties. Habitat
andstratumwithin the forestare important guides to 9. Andropadusvirens Little Greenbul. The quintes-
Andropadus identification. The superficially similar sentialgreenbulofforestedge,rankscaib,abandoned
Phyllastrephusgreenbuls are largelyinsectivores and farms, thicketetc, itpenetrateslittleintoforestproper
consequentlyarenotattractedbyfruitingtreesetc. For except in regrowth along edges oftracks and paths.
furtherdistinctionsbetweenthegenera, seethe Phyl- Occurringthroughouttheregion, itisanotherspecies
lastrephusaccount. thatcallsrelentlessly,fromdeepcoverusuallysome2-
3maboveground. Thecallstartswithafewsubdued
chucklingnotes,followedbyarapidlyascendingseries
Plate2
ofnotesformingapleasantbubblingwarble, increas-
Top: AndropadusgracilirostrisQeti), A.latirostrisinght)-, ing in volume and abruptly ending on a clear, rising
Centre: A.virensQeft), A.cuwirostris(righl)\ highnote. Theplumageisstandard-issueAndropadus
dirty olive-green throughout, and, in the way ofthe
Bottom: A.gracilisQeh), A.ansorgei(right). PalaearcticGardenWarbler(Sylviaborin),theabsence
Nottoscale.(S.MarkAndrews) of any contrast in the plumage is a distinguishing
Identification ofbulbuls PtI: Fishpoolet al. BullABC Vol 1 No 1 -37
}
feature. Itneverhasaneye-ring. Thebillisrelatively That ofA.gracilisconsists offive rapid, jauntynotes,
short and often showsyellowatthegape; its ‘stubbi- andmaybetranscribedas‘wheetwu-wheetwu-wheet’.
ness’issometimesgivenasafieldcharacterbut,inour Thereisalsoashort‘tyuc’call. A.ansorgeihsohastwo
experience,thebillappearslongerthanthisadjective calls,onethatresemblesthefirstotA.gracilisinquality
leads oneto expectandis a dubiousfieldmark. The but lacks its sprightliness and consists of only three
legs are usually pale yellowish-brown but may be notes. Itmaybe rendered ‘wheetwhuutwhit’ or ‘tiu
darker. Thekeystoidentificationare,therefore,habi- wheet tweet’, although the final syllable may be
tat, uniformity of plumage, call and (sometimes) leg dropped. The second call is a rapid trill (not on
colour. Chappuis’recording2),‘rititititit’or‘tchitchitchitchitchi’,
10. Andropaduscurvirostris Plain (Cameroon Som- whichisharshandflatintone.
WhilstbothspeciesarefoundfromGhanatoSierra
bre) Greenbul. This species is found from Togo to
Leone,A.ansorgeiislesswidespreadthanA.gracilis,
Sierra Leone in the forest and forest-savanna mosaic
mzaotnuesreafnodreslta,rgaelltyhroeupglhactehseythdeoporveecreldaipnginsdpeegcireasdeidn cmoormemroenstriincttehdetroimghattuharbeitfaotr.estA,.bgurtacitimliasyisbaecthoemmmoorne
bird of forest edge, secondary habitats and gallery
forest. Itinhabitsthesamelower-middlestratumasA. forest. Bothcanoccuronthesameground,however,
virens,rarelybeingseenabovefivemetresandskulks
andthereisafairdegreeofoverlap-graciliscanoccur
toasimilardegree.
inmatureforest. Bothprefertheuppermiddlestratum,
It shows a similar uniformity ofplumage, except beingmostfrequentlyseeninthecrownsoflowtrees.
tohlaitvatcheeocuoslgoruerenis.mTohirsesoulbtilveacdeiofufserbenrcoewins,rwaitthherextphea-n Paensrohragpesibiescmaourseeoifttefnavsoeuernsatmogrreeatmerathuerieghtfsorteshta,nAA..
rience,andfavourablelight,ausefulfieldcharacter. In gracilis. UnlikeotherAndropadusspecies,bothoccur
addition,itoftenshowsanarrowwhiteorwhitisheye- insmallgroups,singlyorinpairs. ®
ring, sometimes conspicuous, sometimes broken or
faint, unfortunatelyalsosometimeswanting. Keith et References
al statethatithasaneatlydefinedgreythroatwhich, 1. Keith, S., Urban, E.K. and Fry, C.H. (eds) 1992. The
asitcontrastswiththedarkheadandbrownbreast,is Birds ofAfrica. Volume IV. London: Academic
ausefulfieldcharacter; thisfeature is notapparentin Press.
theUpperGuinea race. Ithasa longer, moreslender 2. Chappuis,C. 1975. Illustrationsonoredeproblemes
bill than A. virens, not a very useful character in the bioacoustiques poses par les oiseaux de la zone
field. The call of this species, although discreet, is ethiopienne. Alauda 43: 427-474, Disque 5 & 6.
diagnostic and the surest means of identification. It 3. Gatter, W. 1985. Ein neuer Bulbul aus Westafrika
mayberendered 'tiu-whee-tiutriiiii’or‘su-hi-ootriiiii’, (Aves, Pycnonotidae). J. Om. 126: 155-161.
wisitofhttehneasltsroesmsaodnetohenliatsstoswynll.able. Thefinalharshtrill 4. SMmtoounanrttta,annSee.Nff.oorr(eeessdtt)s.su1r9Rv8ee6py.o.rtCCoaonmfsbertwihadetgieIo:CnBIPoCfBPCC.aammeerroooonn
11&12. AndropadusgracilisLittleGreyGreenbuland 5. Bannerman, D.A. 1936. TheBirdsofTropicalWest
AndropadusansorgeiAnsorge’sGreenbul. Thesetwo Africa. Vol. 4. London: Crown Agents.
species are very similar in appearance, having olive- 6. Mackworth-Praed, C.W. and Grant, C.H.B. 1973.
grey heads and throats and olivaceous green upper- Birds ofWest-Centraland WesternAfrica. SeriesII.
London: Longman.
partswithchestnuttonesin theuppersideofthetail. 7. Collar, N.J. and Stuart, S.N. 1985. The Threatened
Bothusuallyshowobviouswhiteeye-rings. Theonly Birds ofAfrica and Related Islands. Cambridge:
differenceis inthelowerbreastandbellywhichinA. ICBP and IUCN.
ansorgeiare mainly pale olive-greyish centrally but, 8. Hall, B.P. andMoreau, R. 1970. AnAtlasofSpecia-
importantly, become brown-gingeron the flanks and tion in African Passerine Birds. London: British
aroundtheventwhileinA gracilistheunderpartsare Museum (Natural History).
.
olive yellow, brightest in the centre. Indeed, ofthe
Andropadusspecies ansorgeiistheonlyonetoshow ac/o BirdLife International, Wellbrook Court, Girton
Road, Cambridge, CB3 ONA UK.
obvious rufous-bufftones; gracilislacks buff. These
'Van der Heimstraat 52, 2582 SB Den Haag, The
areratherbetterfieldcharactersthanmightfirstappear
Netherlands.
since both species are usually found a few metres
c10 Park View, Weeting, Brandon, Suffolk, UK.
above head height, although, on average, ansorgei
tendstoforageratherhigherthangracilis. Thesurest To becontinuedinBull ABC Vol1 No2.
waytoseparatethesespeciesagain,however,isbycall.
38-BullABC Vol 1 No 1 Identification ofbulbuls Pt I: Fishpoolet al.