Scarlet Minivet

Scarlet Minivet (Male)

     Introduction of Scarlet Minivet

    Scarlet Minivet (Scientific name : (Pericrocotus flammeus) is a small passerine bird as it belongs to the Order Passeriformes. It is included in the family Campephagidae.

     How to identify  Scarlet Minivet

  The Scarlet Minivet is 20-22 cm long and its weight is around 29 gm. It has a strong black beak. Wings of this bird are long and each feather sticking out from the next. Male and female are easily distinguishable.

  Male: The male has  bright black head and upper back. Lower back and rump are deep scarlet . Wings and tail have patches of black and scarlet.Throat is scarlet below  with black upper parts.

  Female:  Forehead and supercilium of female minivet are  rich yellow and upper part is grey-yellow. Color of tail is  yellow and black. Wings are also blackish with two yellow bars . Lower part is bright yellow .
 The juvenile male also have  the same coloration like  the female until it reaches maturity.

       Habitats and Habitats

   Minivets is an arboreal bird, keeps to canopy of tall trees and forage in pairs or small groups which may  sometimes contains several dozen together. The Minivet catches insects while in flight or while perched. It scares insects out of foliage by beating its wings hard and fast flushing out the prey. Natural habitat is broadleaf evergreen, semi-evergreen and deciduous forests, and peatswamp-forest, gardens and groves.

     Food

     Main food of minivet consists  mainly insects like caterpillars, grasshoppers, green crickets and cicadasinsects, They also eat flower nectar.

     Distribution

    Scarlet minivets are not a highly migratory bird.The Scarlet Minivet is found from Africa east to the Pacific Islands but the largest populations are found in the Indian subcontinent, southern China, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
It has many subspecies as below

    * Pericrocotus speciosus - Found along the Himalayas mountain range
    * Pericrocotus speciosus fraterculus- Found in the northeast of India and extends into Myanmar, Yunnan and Hainan
    * Pericrocotus speciosus semiruber  - Found in southern Myanmar and Thailand
    * Andamanensis speciosus - Found on the Andaman Islands
    * Pericrocotus flammeus - Found in the Western Ghats, Nilgiris and Sri Lanka
    * Pericrocotus fohkiensis - Found in southeastern China
    * Pericrocotus flammifer- Found in southern Myanmar, southern Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia
    * Pericrocotus xanthogaster -Found in the southern part of Peninsular Malaysia and Sumatra
    * Pericrocotus minythomelas - Found in Simeulue Island off Sumatra
    * Pericrocotus modiglianii -  Found on Enggano Island
    * Pericrocotus insulanus - Found on Borneo
    * Pericrocotus siebersi- Found on Java and Bali
    * Pericrocotus exul- Found on Lombok
    * Pericrocotus novus- Found on Luzon and Negros
    * Pericrocotus leytensis- Found on the islands of Samar, Leyte and Bohol
    * Pericrocotus gonzalesi- Found in northern and eastern Mindanao
    * Pericrocotus nigroluteus- Found in south central Mindanao
    * Pericrocotus johnstoniae- Found on Mount Apo in the island of Mindanao, Philippines
    * Pericrocotus marchesae -Found in Sulu Archipelago

Female Scarlet Minivet

      Food

    They mostly feed on insects gleaned from foliage high up in the forest canopy. They are often seen in  mixed-species foraging flocks. They catch insects in trees by flycatching or while perched, flushing insects out of foliage by beating their wings.

      Call

  Their songs consist of pleasant, melodic whistling

      Breeding and Nesting

   The nesting period for the Scarlet Minivet is  Apr–Jun in Himalayas and Feb and Jun–Oct in peninsular India. This bird make their nests high up in the treetops anywhere from 3-12 m (10 to 40 ft) up. Structure of the nest loos like a cup which is  closely woven with small twigs and using spider-webs to increase the strength of the nest. The average clutch consists of two or three. The Scarlet Minivet eggs are pale green and spotted. Eggs are incubated by the female alone while the male brings food for the female. Both male and female parents raise the offspring together.