Buff-breasted Babbler (Pellorneum tickelli)
Illustration redrawn by AI from a real photograph

Buff-breasted Babbler

Pellorneum tickelli Blyth, 1859

≈14 cmLength17 gWeight

It favors cover in scrub or the lower layers of bamboo near streams.

Busiest months: February–March · Most records: Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam

Least Concern

How to identify

Where and when it's recorded

Buff-breasted Babbler has been recorded at 151 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 9 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

  1. Bukit FraserMalaysia865 records
  2. Chiang Dao Wildlife Sanctuary – Wat Tham Pha PlongThailand356 records
  3. Taksin Maharat NP – headquarters vicinityThailand321 records
More places
  1. Deo Nui San passVietnam234 records
  2. LonghengChina230 records
  3. Bukit Fraser – Bishop TrailMalaysia224 records
  4. Bukit Fraser – Telekom LoopMalaysia172 records
  5. Cat Tien NPVietnam171 records
  6. Cat Tien National Park – HQVietnam147 records
  7. Bukit Tinggi – Japanese GardenMalaysia135 records

Countries and regions with the most records

MalaysiaThailandVietnamChinaCambodiaLaosIndiaBangladesh

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The buff-breasted babbler (Pellorneum tickelli) is a species of bird in the family Pellorneidae. It is found in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Buff-breasted Babbler?

The Buff-breasted Babbler is about ≈14 cm long and weighs around 17 g.

Where does the Buff-breasted Babbler live?

Its breeding range: Oriental: Southeast Asia. It is most often recorded in Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

When is the best time to see the Buff-breasted Babbler?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in February and March (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Buff-breasted Babbler endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Buff-breasted Babbler as Least Concern.

What does the Buff-breasted Babbler eat?

Main food: Insects & other invertebrates.

What family is the Buff-breasted Babbler in?

It belongs to the family Ground Babblers (Pellorneidae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).

At a glance

Length
≈14 cm
Weight
17 g
Habitat
Forest
Diet
Insects & other invertebrates
Lifestyle
Active on the ground
Migration
Resident (barely migrates)
Conservation
Least Concern
More measurements
Wing
62 mm
Tail
52 mm
Bill
16 mm
Tarsus
26 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Oriental: Southeast Asia

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Subspecies · 1
  • Pellorneum tickelli fulvum ne Myanmar, n Thailand and s China to n Indochina

Classification

Order
Passerines Passeriformes
Family
Ground Babblers Pellorneidae
Genus
Pellorneum

Other birds in the genus Pellorneum

Puff-throated BabblerPuff-throated BabblerPellorneum ruficepsBrown-capped BabblerBrown-capped BabblerPellorneum fuscocapillusMarsh BabblerMarsh BabblerPellorneum palustreMalayan Black-capped BabblerMalayan Black-capped BabblerPellorneum nigrocapitatumJavan Black-capped BabblerJavan Black-capped BabblerPellorneum capistratumBornean Black-capped BabblerBornean Black-capped BabblerPellorneum capistratoidesMourning BabblerMourning BabblerPellorneum malaccenseGlissando BabblerGlissando BabblerPellorneum saturatumLeaflitter BabblerLeaflitter BabblerPellorneum poliogeneAshy-headed BabblerAshy-headed BabblerPellorneum cinereicepsSpot-throated BabblerSpot-throated BabblerPellorneum albiventreSumatran BabblerSumatran BabblerPellorneum buettikoferi
Buff-breasted Babbler

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Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Joren van Schie. ↗

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