Birdfinding.info ⇒ Generally common across most of its range. Ubiquitous in India and many of the territories where it has been introduced, including Oahu. The Houston population rapidly became established west and north of downtown during the 2010s, and appears likely to continue spreading.
Red-vented Bulbul
Pycnonotus cafer
South Asia; introduced elsewhere. Inhabits various semiopen habitats, including urban and agricultural areas.
Resident throughout South Asia north to the Himalayan foothills, from the borderlands of northeastern Afghanistan and central Pakistan east to Myanmar and into foothills of western Yunnan, and south to Karachi, Sri Lanka, the Irrawaddy Delta, and locally across the border into central-western Thailand (Khao Laem National Park).
Introduced populations are established on the Arabian Peninsula, several tropical Pacific island groups, and locally elsewhere.
Along the southern shore of the Persian Gulf, established in Kuwair and locally from Bahrain east through Qatar and the U.A.E. to northern Oman. Also on Iran’s Kish Island on the northern side of the Gulf. More isolated populations appear to be established around Riyadh and in southern Oman around Salaleh.
In the tropical Pacific, established on Oahu (abundant), the Marshall Islands (Majuro), New Caledonia, Fiji (Viti Levu, Vanua Levu, Taveuni, and many islets), Tonga (Nuku’alofa, Eua, Niuafo’ou, and Vava’u), Samoa (Savai’i, Upolu, and Pago Pago), and the Society Islands (Bora Bora, Taha’a, Raiatea, Huahine, Moorea, and Tahiti).
Starting around the mid-2000s, new introduced populations have gained footholds in southeastern Texas (metropolitan Houston) and the Canary Islands (Fuerteventura), where they are spreading and appear certain to become well-established.
Identification
A familiar, robust, jaylike bulbul. Its eponymous red undertail covert patch is striking but shared with some related species. Many other details of plumage pattern and coloration are highly variable, and some individuals are readily confused with the closely related Sooty-headed Bulbul (see comparison below).
Red-vented Bulbul. (Waikiki, Oahu; February 4, 2013.) © Matthew Grube
Red-vented Bulbul. (Doha, Qatar; April 13, 2010.) © John Thompson
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly brown upperparts and buffy underparts. (Bhutnal Kere, Bijapur, Karnataka, India; June 14, 2019.) © Ramesh Desai
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly dark underparts and brown cheeks. (Fa’a’a, Tahiti, French Polynesia; December 29, 2018.) © Keith Gress
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly gray body plumage above and below, and pale brown cheeks. (Hongbenghe, Yunnan, China; January 25, 2019.) © David Beadle
The upperparts are typically brown with paler gray scaling, a black hood, peaked crest that is often raised, dark tail, and contrasting white rump. Some populations are mostly warm-brown above, some are mostly grayish, and some are mostly black or blackish.
The black hood varies from extensive, covering the entire head, neck, and chest, to just a partial helmet. Many intermediate patterns exist, including some that have a discrete hood (whole head and neck) crisply bordered by a pale-gray scaly nape, and many variations that have contrasting, paler brown cheek patches.
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly grayish-brown upperparts and crisply defined, all-black hood, showing white rump. (Malampuzha, Palakkad, Kerala, India; July 22, 2020.) © Novelkumar M.S.
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly medium-brown upperparts, pale-scaled nape, crisply defined all-black hood, and whitish underparts, carrying prey and showing white rump. (Bhutnal Kere, Bijapur, Karnataka, India; June 30, 2019.) © Ramesh Desai
Red-vented Bulbul showing extensively scaled upperparts. (Bhutnal Kere, Bijapur, Karnataka, India; July 21, 2019.) © Ramesh Desai
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly pale grayish-brown upperparts. (Fort Derussy Beach Park, Honolulu, Hawaii; January 18, 2017.) © Gale VerHague
Red-vented Bulbul. (Waikele Elementary School, Waipahu, Oahu; January 21, 2020.) © Craig Fujii
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly sooty-brown plumage, showing white rump. (Sinhagad Valley, Pune, Maharashtra, India; February 5, 2018.) © Amol Kokane
Red-vented Bulbul with extensively gray plumage. (Daroji Bear Sanctuary, Karnataka, India; January 9, 2018.) © Gururaj Moorching
Red-vented Bulbul, showing brown upperparts with paler fringes and grayish rump. (Houston, Texas; December 22, 2016.) © Kurt Hillman
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly brown plumage and pale-gray nape. (Vadodara, Gujarat, India; March 21, 2015.) © Mayur Patel
Red-vented Bulbul with upperparts showing multiple shades of brown and crisply defined black hood. (Bhutnal Kere, Bijapur, Karnataka, India; June 30, 2019.) © Ramesh Desai
Red-vented Bulbul with strongly scaled, warm-brown upperparts. (Agara, Bangalore, Karnataka, India; February 10, 2016.) © Atheem Kothiala
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly blackish plumage, showing white rump and red undertail coverts—also note heavy bill. (Waialua, Oahu; June 7, 2021.) © John Murnane
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly pale-brown or buffy plumage and a limited black hood. (Mon, Myanmar; December 21, 2018.) © Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
Red-vented Bulbul with extensively whitish upperparts and underparts, and a crisply defined black hood. (Kava Road, Palakkad, Kerala, India; September 21, 2019.) © Novelkumar M.S.
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly gray-brown upperparts and small pale-gray rump patch. (Kalesar National Park, Haryana, India; October 11, 2019.) © Nitin Chandra
Red-vented Bulbul with fairly prominent pale-brown cheek patch. (Punakha, Bhutan; February 17, 2020.) © Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
Red-vented Bulbul with unusually prominent, buffy cheek patch. (Kathmandu, Nepal; August 8, 2019.) © Ian Hearn
Red-vented Bulbul, an apparent subadult (little red on undertail coverts) with mostly cold-brown-and-gray plumage. (Ajban Farms, Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.; September 2, 2020.) © Mohamed Almazrouei
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly dingey-brown plumage overall. (Green Park Extension, New Delhi, India; March 19, 2019.) © Nitin Chandra
Red-vented Bulbul with crisply defined black hood and brown cheek patches. (Punakha, Bhutan; February 17, 2020.) © Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly dark-brown plumage above and below. (Chintamoni Kar Bird Sanctuary, South 24 Parganas, West Bengal, India; March 11, 2018.) © Arnab Pal
Red-vented Bulbul with nearly all-black upperparts. (Houston, Texas; January 3, 2021.) © Christopher Lindsey
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly warm-brown upperparts. (Birkona Road, Chhattisgarh, India; August 12, 2017.) © Dr. Shrutidev Mishra
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly pale-grayish plumage and pale cheek patch. (Hongbenghe, Yunnan, China; February 2, 2019.) © Paul Hyde
Red-vented Bulbul with predominantly pale-brown plumage and a limited black helmet. (Mon, Myanmar; December 21, 2018.) © Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
The underparts are typically a mix of brown and gray, darker from the throat to the chest (typically with paler scaling), and becoming paler, often whitish on the belly. Some populations are largely blackish below and some are mostly pale-grayish, but all are darker on the chest than the belly.
The tail is mostly blackish with broad white tips on the underside—and narrow white tips on the upperside.
Red-vented Bulbul. (Kachchh, Gujarat, India; December 23, 2018.) © Bhaarat Vyas
Red-vented Bulbul with sooty-brown underparts and a contrastingly pale-gray nape. (Costa Calma, Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, Spain; November 28, 2020.) © Yeray Seminario
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly warm-brown, strongly scaled underparts. (University of Jammu, India; May 4, 2020.) © Parmil Kumar
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly warm-brown, subtly scaled underparts. (Vazhani Reservoir, Thrissur, Kerala, India; April 9, 2017.) © Mathew Thekkethala
Red-vented Bulbul with a warm-brown chest and a contrastingly pale-gray nape. (Vazani Dam, Thrissur, Kerala, India; January 27, 2019.) © Mathew Thekkethala
Red-vented Bulbul with warm-brown, strongly scaled chest. (Mon, Myanmar; December 21, 2018.) © Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly unmarked underparts, tailed fanned, showing white tips. (Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India; March 4, 2021.) © Ananyaa Dobhal
Red-vented Bulbul with extensive black bib, pale gray belly, and scaled transition between them. (Kahuku Aqua Ponds, Oahu, Hawaii; November 12, 2016.) © Sharif Uddin
Red-vented Bulbul with largely blackish plumage. (Kapiolani Park, Honolulu, Hawaii; October 5, 2017.) © Jeff Graham
Red-vented Bulbul with an extensive black bib and white belly. (Hongbenghe, Yunnan, China; February 2, 2019.) © Paul Hyde
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly grayish plumage. (Jaipurdoddi, Bangalore, Karnataka, India; October 1, 2017.) © Albin Jacob
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly unmarked underparts. (Kolkata, West Bengal, India; June 12, 2021.) © Sandeep Biswas
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly pale-brownish underparts. (Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India; May 13, 2020.) © Vijayaditya Singh Rathore
Red-vented Bulbul with mostly pale-brown plumage—subtly darker on the chest, with faint scaling. (Pine Hill Resort, Shan, Myanmar; March 21, 2018.) © Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
Red-vented Bulbul, immature. (Kapiolani Park, Honolulu, Hawaii; October 11, 2017.) © Charlotte Morris
Red-vented Bulbul, immature. (Al Warsan Lakes, Dubai, United Arab Emirates; August 5, 2018.) © Ian Davies
Cf. Sooty-headed Bulbul. Red-vented and Sooty-headed Bulbuls are sibling species with similar plumage patterns and coloration. Their ranges overlap marginally in Myanmar and Yunnan.
Both species vary internally, and some plumages are unmistakable, but each includes some populations that resemble the other. Among Red-vented, these are the palest plumages, with the least extensive black hoods—in some cases even limited to “helmet” shape, like typical Sooty-headed. Among Sooty-headed these are the darkest plumages, with red undertail coverts.
The most reliable distinction between these groups seems to be the coloration of the chest: Red-vented generally has black or brown on the chest, often scaled with pale gray, whereas Sooty-headed has a pale-gray chest, either unmarked or faintly streaked.
Red-vented Bulbul—even the palest individuals, such as this one, have some darker color on the chest, usually with distinct scaling. (Yay Aye Kan Reservoir, Shan, Myanmar; March 21, 2018.) © Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
Sooty-headed Bulbul typically has evenly pale-gray underparts that are mostly or entirely unmarked—sometimes with subtle streaking. (Hong Kong; January 22, 2017.) © Lo Chun Fai
Notes
Polytypic species consisting of eight recognized subspecies.
References
BirdLife International. 2018. Pycnonotus cafer. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T22712695A132102224. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22712695A132102224.en. (Accessed June 13, 2021.)
eBird. 2021. eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, N.Y. http://www.ebird.org. (Accessed June 13, 2021.)
Raine, H., and A.F. Raine. 2020. ABA Field Guide to the Birds of Hawai’i. Scott & Nix, Inc., New York.
Pratt, H.D., P.L. Bruner, and D.G. Berrett. 1987. A Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific. Princeton University Press.
Pyle, R.L., and P. Pyle. 2017. The Birds of the Hawaiian Islands: Occurrence, History, Distribution, and Status. Version 2 (January 1, 2017). http://hbs.bishopmuseum.org/birds/rlp-monograph/. B.P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii.
Xeno-Canto. 2021. Red-vented Bulbul – Pycnonotus cafer. https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Pycnonotus-cafer. (Accessed June 13, 2021.)