Malaysian honeyguide


The Malaysian honeyguide is a bird in the family Indicatoridae, which are paleotropical near passerine birds related to the woodpeckers. The species is native to Southeast Asia.

Description

It is a medium-sized, up to 18 cm long, olive-brown honeyguide with greenish streaks, reddish iris, thick grey bill and greyish white below. The male has a yellow patch on the shoulder, while the female has none. The young resembles the female with streaked underparts.

Habitat and range

The Malaysian honeyguide occurs throughout lowland broadleaved forests of western Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and the island of Sumatra.

Habits

The call of the Malaysian honeyguide is a cat-like "meow", followed by a rattling sound. The diet consists mainly of insects, especially wild bees and wasps. It nests in tree hollows.

Status

Due to ongoing habitat loss, local and sparse population, the Malaysian honeyguide is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.