Common Tailor bird

Introduction :The common tailor bird , popular for it's beautiful song found accorss tropical region of Asia. Famous for its nest which the female make by ' sewing ' one or more leaves together and that's why they are called ' Tailor ' bird. It belongs to the order Passeriform and included in the family Sylvidae.

How to Identify Tailor bird

The colour of the tailor bird is bright. The upper plumage is green or gray whereas the under parts are shiny yellow white or gary. Size of the common tailor bird is between 10 cm. to 13 cm. including the tail. Weight of adult is between 5 gm. to 15 gm. It has two elongated pin point feather in tail.
The wings are short and rounded and the thighs are rufous. On the head, center of the crown is rufous and face is white and black patches on the neck. It's bill is long and down curved. The colour of the eyes are pale brown. Legs and feet are pinkish in colour. Male tailor bird has long central tail feathers in breeding plumage and female has less rufous on forehead. Young tailor bird are duller than adults.

Nesting

: Female tailor bird using her bill as a needle, stitches one or more leaves into a pouch to form the basis of nest.
Female tailor bird makes a series of holes with her long slender bill and then draws plant fibre, spider web, insect silk even stolen household thread through the holes to form seperate loops which are knotted on the outer side.
The real nest is build inside the conical shelter. Female tailor bird waves fine strands of grass and form the cup. Then this tiny cup is lined with feathers and other soft materials such as plant down. Nest is usually low and well hidden, at about one metre above the ground. See Tailor bird making nest in VIDEO below.

Habitat and habitat

: The common tailor bird lives in deciduous forests, mangroves, open woodlands, urban park and gardens . It is very active foraging and hopping in to vegetation of wooded habitat, searching for insects. This bird has a habit of flicking it's tail continuously, often erect.
They are always active and restless. They are usually seen in pairs. Insects ; adults or larvae is their main food. Small fruits, berries nectar or tiny seeds are also in their foodlist. Always shift their perch and make short, quick, darting flight.
Breeding season is between January to June. Female lays 2 to 4 eggs which are reddish or bluish white in colour, spotted with brownish red. Incubation period is about 14 days. Eggs are hatched by females only. Both parents feed and raise the chicks. Young fledge of about 24 days of age.
The call of common tailor bird is loud cheerful ' towit - towit, pretty - pretty - pretty '. It also utters a rapid descending trill including five notes.
Common tailor bird is found in South Asia, from Pakistan and India to south China and Indonesia. It can be found up to 1600 metres of elevation in South West Asia.

Conservational status : It is included in the schedule -IV according to wildlife (protection) act 1972 and classified as Least - Concern (LC) by the ICUN.

Scientific name : Orthotomus sutorius.

Photo: By me

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