Family Laughingthrushes and allies (Leiotrichidae)
Least Concern
Beautiful Sibia (Heterophasia pulchella)
Taxonomy
French: Garrulaxe superbe German: Prachtsibia Spanish: Sibia bonita
Taxonomy:
Sibia pulchella
Godwin-Austen
, 1874,Barail Range, Assam, India
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Subspecies and Distribution
H. p. nigroaurita
(Kinnear, 1944) – NE India (W & C Arunachal Pradesh) and adjacent S China (SE Xizang).
H. p. pulchella
(Godwin-Austen, 1874) – NE India (E Arunachal Pradesh S to Nagaland), N Myanmar and S China (W & NW Yunnan).
Descriptive notes
23 cm; 35–50 g. Blue-grey babbler with black face and wing-coverts, dull brown tertials, broad black subterminal tailband. Nominate race has lores, forehead, area... read more
Voice
Song a repeated loud strident “ti-ti-titi-tu-ti” (descending slightly towards end),... read more
Habitat
Broadleaf evergreen forest at 1650–3000 m, occasionally to 3200 m; locally down to 300 m in... read more
Food and feeding
Insects and their larvae, including beetles (Coleoptera); seeds, including those of viburnums (Viburnum) and evergreen magnolias... read more
Breeding
Apr–Jul. Nest a cup made of moss, lined with rootlets, placed near end of horizontal branch of small tree. Eggs pale blue. No other... read more
Movements
Resident; minor altitudinal movements in winter.
Status and conservation
Not globally threatened. Restricted-range species: present in Eastern Himalayas EBA. Locally common in NE India, where present in Mouling National Park, common in Namdapha... read more
Has been separated in genus Malacias. Recently treated as monotypic, but races appear quite distinct. Two subspecies recognized.