The eye-ringed parrotbill, also known as the Yunnan parrotbill, is a species of bird in the parrotbill family Paradoxornithidae. This 10 cm long parrotbill is endemic to China, breeding in northwest Yunnan.
Region
Hengduan Mountains, Southwest China
Typical Environment
Occupies dense montane shrubbery and bamboo understorey, especially along edges of coniferous and mixed forests. It favors rhododendron and bamboo thickets, secondary regrowth, and brushy gullies. The species keeps close to cover, moving through tangles just above ground to mid-levels. It may make short altitudinal shifts following weather and food availability.
Altitude Range
2200–3600 m
Climate Zone
Highland
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
Also called the Yunnan parrotbill, this tiny bamboo specialist is confined to northwestern Yunnan, China. It moves in lively flocks through dense thickets, where its prominent pale eye-ring is often the easiest feature to spot. Like many parrotbills, it forages nimbly through bamboo leaves and stems, gleaning small invertebrates and seeds.
Temperament
social and active
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Usually in small, chattering flocks that weave through dense vegetation. Pairs nest low in thickets, building a small cup hidden in bamboo or shrubs. Likely monogamous, with both parents involved in care.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
High, thin tinkling trills interspersed with sharp tsip notes. Contact calls are rapid and scolding, keeping flocks coordinated in cover.
Plumage
Warm brown upperparts with slightly rufous tones on the crown and face, paler buffy underparts, and fine, soft-textured feathers typical of parrotbills.
Diet
Takes small insects and other invertebrates gleaned from leaves, twigs, and bamboo culms. Supplements its diet with seeds, buds, and occasionally berries, especially outside the breeding season. Uses its stout bill to pry into tight clusters of leaves.
Preferred Environment
Feeds within dense bamboo and shrub layers from near ground level to mid-canopy. Often forages along forest edges, clearings, and regenerating scrub where cover remains thick.
