Common Iora

Latin Name: 
Aegithina tiphia
Category: 
Size: 
16cm
Description: 

Male: greenish above (rich black above, with yellowish rump, in summer breeding plumage); black wings and tail; two white wing-bars; bright yellow  underbody. Female: yellow-green plumage; white wingbars; greenish-brown wings. Pairs keep to leafy branches, often with other small birds; moves energetically amidst branches in hunt for insects, caterpillars; rich call notes often a giveaway of its presence in an area.

Habitat: 
light forests, edges of forest, cultivation, gardens in and around habitation.
Food: 
insects; also flower nectar
Distribution: 
most of the country, south of Himalayan foothills; most common in low country.
Call: 
Call Description: 
whistling wheet…wheet… and an interrogative, quick-repeated whi…whi…whi…whee thereafter; other trilling, pleasant notes when breeding
National Status: