Blackcap Babbler
Encyclopedia
The Blackcap Babbler, Turdoides reinwardtii, is an Old World babbler
. The Old World babblers are a large family of Old World
passerine
bird
s characterised by soft fluffy plumage. These are birds of tropical areas, with the greatest variety in southeast Asia
.
The Blackcap Babbler is a common resident breeding bird in west Africa
from Senegal
to Cameroon
. Its habitat is thick scrub and forest. This species
, like most babblers, is not migratory
, and has short rounded wings and a weak flight.
It builds its cup-shaped nest in a tree, concealed in dense masses of foliage. The normal clutch is two or three eggs.
These birds have dark grey-brown upperparts. The head is brownish black with a white throat and conspicuous white eye ring. The underparts are white, mottled on the breast and with buff flanks.
The Blackcap Babbler lives in flocks of four to twelve or more, which help to raise the young communally. It is a noisy bird, and the presence of a flock may generally be known at some distance by the continual chattering, squeaking and chirping produced by its members. The main call is a cha-ka-ta. It feeds mainly on insects, but also eats fruit.
The binomial commemorates the botanist Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt
.
Old World babbler
The Old World babblers or timaliids are a large family of mostly Old World passerine birds. They are rather diverse in size and coloration, but are characterised by soft fluffy plumage. These are birds of tropical areas, with the greatest variety in Southeast Asia and the Indian Subcontinent...
. The Old World babblers are a large family of Old World
Old World
The Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" ....
passerine
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s characterised by soft fluffy plumage. These are birds of tropical areas, with the greatest variety in southeast Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
.
The Blackcap Babbler is a common resident breeding bird in west Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
from Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
to Cameroon
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
. Its habitat is thick scrub and forest. This species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
, like most babblers, is not migratory
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
, and has short rounded wings and a weak flight.
It builds its cup-shaped nest in a tree, concealed in dense masses of foliage. The normal clutch is two or three eggs.
These birds have dark grey-brown upperparts. The head is brownish black with a white throat and conspicuous white eye ring. The underparts are white, mottled on the breast and with buff flanks.
The Blackcap Babbler lives in flocks of four to twelve or more, which help to raise the young communally. It is a noisy bird, and the presence of a flock may generally be known at some distance by the continual chattering, squeaking and chirping produced by its members. The main call is a cha-ka-ta. It feeds mainly on insects, but also eats fruit.
The binomial commemorates the botanist Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt
Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt
Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt was a Prussian-born Dutch botanist.Reinwardt was the founder and first director of agriculture of the botanic garden at Bogor in Java...
.