Crested Barbet - Trachyphonus vaillantii

Crested Barbet

Trachyphonus vaillantii

Order : Piciformes

Family : Lybiidae ;

3 autres fiches de cette famille.
French version
Hairy-breasted Barbet
White-eared Barbet
Crested Barbet

Biometrics :

Size : 23 à 24 cm
Wingspan :
Weight : 70 gr

IUCN conservation status :

Extinct

Threatened

Least
concern

Extinc
in the Wild

Near
threatened

Not
evaluated

EX EW CR EN VU NT LC NE

Geographic range :

Synonyms : Barbudo Crestado (es), Barbuto di Levaillant (it), Haubenbartvogel (al), Kuifbaardvogel (nl), Crested Barbet (en)

Physical description :
Crested Barbet has a beautiful colourful plumage. Upperparts, back and wings, are black with white specks and crescents. We can see a broad black band on the rear neck. Tail is black barred with white, with white terminal edge. Rump is red.
Underparts are yellow. Upper breast shows a broad black band, finely spotted with white, and bordered with white, contrasting with the lower yellow breast, streaked with red. Belly is yellow.
Crested Barbet has colourful head, with black crest. Head is yellow, and we can see fine red scaling. Face is mostly red. Chin is yellow.
Short bill is strong and pale yellow. Eyes are reddish-brown, with olive-green bare skin as an eye ring. Legs and feet are greenish-grey.
Female is slightly duller than male.

Voice : Crested Barbet's common call is a long trill 'trrrrrr' uttered during 30 seconds. It is a very vocal bird and this trill may continue for long periods. It usually calls from an exposed branch.

Habitat : Crested Barbet likes gardens and parks, exotic plantations, woodlands and riverine bushveld, tree savannahs and watercourses.
GEOGRAPHIC RANGE: Crested Barbet is common in North-eastern of South Africa, but it is also found in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana and northern Namibia.

Behaviour : Crested Barbet spends most of its time foraging on the ground, searching for food. It likes to bounce around the ground. It also forages in bushes and trees for insects and fruit. It frequents bird feeders.
It is often solitary or in pairs. They are monogamous.
Crested Barbet is territorial and aggressive. It chases off nest competitors and other birds entering into territory. This one varies in size according to habitat.
Crested Barbet's nest is often parasitized by Greater and Lesser Honeyguides (indicator indicator and indicator minor) and both adults chase them strongly, to keep them from entering the nest hole.
They may attack rats and snakes, and kill snakes.
When it is feeding, it looks around all the time from intruders or predators.

Flight : Crested Barbet doesn't fly easily. It prefers to perform short flights.

Reproduction-nesting : Crested Barbet's nest is a hole in Sisal log (agave sisalana). They nest in September to December.
Both adults excavate the hole. It includes an entrance tunnel and an enlarged nesting chamber. They may nest in nest boxes.
Female lays 1 to 5 eggs, at one day intervals. Incubation begins with second or third egg laid, and lasts about 13 to 17 days, mainly by female. Chicks hatch altricial, naked and blind. They are fed by both parents with insects. Parents clean the nest, removing faecal materials. Young fledge at about one month of age.
This species produces one to five broods per season.

Food habits : Crested Barbet feeds on insects and fruit, but also on worms, snails and bird eggs.

Protection / threats : Crested Barbet is a common species.

Other links :
Iucn
Birdlife

Specification sheet created by Nicole Bouglouan

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