Black-backed Barbet Pogonornis minor Scientific name definitions

Taxonomic note: Lump. This account is a combination of multiple species accounts originally published in HBW Alive. That content has been combined and labeled here at the subspecies level. Moving forward we will create a more unified account for this parent taxon. Please consider contributing your expertise to update this account.

Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

19.5–21 cm; 40–57 g. Long-tailed, pale-billed barbet with much white in plumage. Male has red forehead and forecrown, blackish lores, rest of head brown; upperparts blackish-brown; white below, with orange-pink on belly and black thighs on pale legs with pinkish-flesh; bill light pinkish-gray to pale horn-gray, often tinged greenish above and pink below, with 1–2 “teeth”; orbital skin whitish-ochre to violet. Female like male, but at least two females known with spotting on flanks suggestive of sexual dimorphism. Immature duller, lacks red, has yellow in place of pink.

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

19–21 cm; 40–50 g. Long-tailed, mainly black-and-white barbet, with red forecrown , distinct white “V” on otherwise black upperparts and apricot-pink  flush to belly ; large, cream-colored bill, pale violet orbital skin, irides yellow, orange, red, and brown, and legs  and feet vary between pink, red, and brown, with paler soles. Immature resembles adult, but is browner and lacks obvious red forecrown. Compared to formerly conspecific Black-backed Barbet (see Systematics comments), present species has broad white head- and face-sides (reaching above eye-level behind it), black hindcrown and upperparts (rather than brown), with white bands either side of mantle meeting on mid-back to form white “V”.

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Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

Along with White-faced barbet (P. macclounii), with which usually considered conspecific, related both to Brown-breasted Barbet (Pogonornis melanopterus) and to the Double-toothed Barbet (Pogonornis bidentatus) group, latter including that species, Bearded Barbet (Pogonornis dubius) and Black-breasted Barbet (Pogonornis rolleti). Differs from macclounii in characters indicated under that species. Monotypic.

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

Usually considered conspecific with Black-backed Barbet, but differs in its white versus mouse-brown cheeks, ear coverts, supercilium, and scapular line to back; black versus mouse-brown lores and malar tufts; and black versus mouse-brown mid-crown to mantle. Also shares broad hybrid zone with Black-backed Barbet over a considerable area (southwestern DRCongo to north-central Angola), resulting form sometimes referred to as intercedens. Monotypic.

Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

Southern Gabon to western DRCongo and south to west-central Angola.

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

Northeastern Angola, south-central DRCongo, southern Burundi and west & central Tanzania (1 Glen, R., Mtahiko, M., De Leyser, L. and Stolberger, S. (2005). Bird records from the Isunkaviola Hills of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Scopus 25: 61–66. Close ) south to northern & western Zambia and northwestern Malawi.

Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

Requirements and preferences much like those of P. macclounii.

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

Woodland (including miombo), gardens and open places with scattered trees and plantations, edges of forest (including Syzygium and Cryptosepalum, where rare), riverine vegetation, and thickets in formerly wooded country; enters pine plantations when foraging. Attracted to termite mounds and carton-ant nests. Recorded to 1,730 m in south-central Tanzania (1 Glen, R., Mtahiko, M., De Leyser, L. and Stolberger, S. (2005). Bird records from the Isunkaviola Hills of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Scopus 25: 61–66. Close ), mainly at 900–1,700 m in Zambia (2 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ) and at 1,200–1,600 m in northern Malawi (3 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ).

Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

Resident and sedentary.

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

Resident and generally sedentary, although local wandering to lower elevations (680 m) is suspected in Zambia (2 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ).

Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

No known differences from P. macclouniiExternal link.

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

Diet little known: fruits , including figs, berries, and their seeds, also palm-nut fibers; and various flying insects and larvae, such as inchworms. Feeds from ground to canopy, in branches and foliage; plucks fruits, gleans insects, flycatches, and hovers to take insects; observed feeding with Whyte's Barbet (Stactolaema whytii) (1 Glen, R., Mtahiko, M., De Leyser, L. and Stolberger, S. (2005). Bird records from the Isunkaviola Hills of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Scopus 25: 61–66. Close ). Generally forages within 0.5 km of nest.

Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

Not known to differ from P. macclounii.

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

Song of trilled buzzy notes at ca. 26 per second, 1–3 seconds long, rendered nyeh-a-aaaaaaaaaaaaa or kriiiiiiiiiiii-, resembles those of Crested Barbet (Trachyphonus vaillantii)and Double-toothed Barbet, as well as the shorter song of Scaly-throated Honeyguide (Indicator variegatus); short krek or krek-ek call like major call of Double-toothed Barbet (but also likened to some calls of Broad-billed Roller (Eurystomus glaucurus)), apparently used mainly in contact but also during courtship-feeding. Black-backed Barbet also uses fast or slow grating in interactions (e.g. kyeek-kyek-tyek or tl-yik-kli-yik), screeching calls used with grating ddtttttt-, drrrr- or slower klik-ik-ik-ik (the latter also given during nest changeovers); also a hollow car note. Other signals are bill-tapping, hard bill-wiping and wing-rustling, especially around nest. It is unknown if both sexes sing, but at least in northern Zambia song is much less frequently heard during this species’ breeding season than those of sympatric Lybius barbets.

Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

Very poorly studied compared to P. macclounii, but season is August–December, continuing to April in Gabon and DRCongo. Most aspects of nesting ecology are probably similar to better-studied P. macclounii, but this requires confirmation.

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

Mainly September–December (principally October in Zambia) (2 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ), but possibly as early as July in Malawi (3 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ). Nests in pairs or trios. Tail-flitting, swinging of tail and body, bowing, tail-cocking and allopreening occur. Nest excavated by two adults, of which one possibly a helper, at 2.5–7.6 m in arboreal carton-ant nest, tree stub or dead branch (e.g. of Brachystegia or Syzygium guineense) sometimes up to 20 m from woodland. Tunnel in carton-ant nest measures 10 cm deep and leads to 10 cm spherical chamber; readily renests in new chamber, even within 25 cm of old nest; territorial, but nests as close as 300 m, and nest defended against hole-nesters such as starlings (Sturnidae), other barbets (Black-collared Barbet (Lybius torquatus) kept 50 m or more away, and also seen chasing Whyte's Barbet), and Lesser Honeyguide (Indicator minor), but apparently not from woodpeckers. Eggs 3–4, white, size 22.6–24.7 mm × 17.8–18.3 mm, mass 3.5–3.8 g; incubation by all adults; incubation and fledging periods unknown, but nestlings fed up to 12 times/hour; fledglings follow adults, are fed entirely on fruits. Probably parasitized by Lesser Honeyguide.

Not globally threatened (Least Concern).

Black-backed Barbet (Brown-backed)

Appears to be scarce to locally more common, e.g. described as not uncommon in Angola. Adaptable, occurring in gardens, but requires suitable nesting sites. Almost certainly suffers nest parasitism by honeyguides. Present in protected areas such as Lesio-Louna Reserve (Republic of Congo), although even here there is evidence of intergradation with P. macclounii (4 King, T. (2011). The birds of the Lesio-Louna and Lefini Reserves, Batéké Plateau, Republic of Congo. Malimbus 33(1):1–41. Close ).

Black-backed Barbet (Black-backed)

No overall population estimate, but the species has a large range (estimated at 1,660,000 km²) and is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats. Common locally. Not uncommon in Angola, but uncommon in western Tanzania, although range recently extended to south-central Tanzania, where common in Ruaha National Park (1 Glen, R., Mtahiko, M., De Leyser, L. and Stolberger, S. (2005). Bird records from the Isunkaviola Hills of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Scopus 25: 61–66. Close ). Considered to be rather discreet, comparatively solitary and relatively quiet, and thus potentially overlooked, in many parts of its range, e.g. Zambia (where it occurs over much of the north & northwest, but is apparently absent from the Luangwa Valley) (2 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ) and Malawi (where it is restricted to the extreme north) (3 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ). Almost certainly suffers nest parasitism by honeyguides. Present in Ruvuvu National Park (Burundi), Gombe Stream Game Reserve (Tanzania) and Nyika National Park (Malawi) (3 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ).