The white-hooded babbler is a species of bird in the family Pellorneidae.
Region
Southeast Asia
Typical Environment
Occurs in humid evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, secondary growth, and bamboo thickets from the Himalayan foothills through Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and adjacent southern China. It keeps to dense undergrowth, forest edges, and scrubby hillsides, usually below the mid-canopy. The species tolerates selectively logged and regenerating habitats if sufficient cover remains. It is generally a lowland to foothill bird but can reach montane slopes where bamboo is abundant.
Altitude Range
150–2000 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A shy understory specialist, the white-hooded babbler often travels in small, chatty parties and readily joins mixed-species flocks. Its crisp white 'hood' contrasts with its warm rufous body, making brief views in dense vegetation surprisingly distinctive. It favors bamboo thickets and secondary forest, where it forages close to the ground. Both sexes look similar, and pairs keep contact with sharp calls.
Juveniles show rufous head
Temperament
social and active
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Commonly found in small family groups and frequently joins mixed-species foraging flocks in the understory. Nests are typically placed low in dense vegetation or bamboo tangles. Pairs maintain close contact and may defend small territories within suitable habitat.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Loud, chattery series of whistles and scolds delivered from cover, often antiphonal between pair members. Contact calls are sharp and repetitive, helping groups keep together in thick foliage.
Plumage
Clean white hood and throat contrasting with rufous-brown upperparts and warm buff underparts; wings and tail are darker rufous-brown.
Diet
Feeds primarily on insects and other small arthropods, gleaned from leaves, twigs, and bamboo stems. It will take larvae and small caterpillars and may occasionally consume small berries. Foraging is methodical and close to the ground, often within dense leaf litter and thickets.
Preferred Environment
Forages in shaded understory, bamboo clumps, vine tangles, and along forest edges and trails. Often uses regenerating scrub and secondary forest where cover is dense.
