Red-whiskered Bulbul - Pycnonotus jocosus

Red-whiskered Bulbul (Introduced)

Pycnonotus jocosus

Origin:
Family: Pycnonotidae (Bulbuls, this is the only species in Australia)
Size: 20 cm
Distribution: Very small parts of NSW, VIC and QLD, including around Sydney
Status: Common to locally common
Habitat: Urban areas
References: Simpson and Day, Reader's Digest

Although the Red-whiskered Bulbul is introduced, it seems like a "nice" bird, unlike many of the other introduced birds such as the Feral Pigeon, the Common Myna and others.

They make a variety of several nice melodic sounds, and are usually seen in groups of two or three, perhaps four or even five occasionally.

The Red-whiskered Bulbul has a crest on the top of the head which is quite distinctive, and tiny red patches behind the eye and under its tail that are usually hard to see. Juvenile bulbuls are pink under the tail and have no red patch behind the eye.

Red-whiskered Bulbul - Pycnonotus jocosus
Photo: Blaxland, Blue Mountains NSW

Red-whiskered Bulbul - Pycnonotus jocosus
Photo: Blaxland, Blue Mountains NSW

Some Birdwatching Resources

The Australian Bird Guide, by Peter Menkhorst (Author), Danny Rogers (Author), Rohan Clarke (Author), Jeff Davies (Illustrator), Peter Marsack (Illustrator), Kim Franklin (Illustrator) - Red-whiskered Bulbul - Pycnonotus jocosus NEW: The Australian Bird Guide, by Peter Menkhorst (Author), Danny Rogers (Author), Rohan Clarke (Author), Jeff Davies (Illustrator), Peter Marsack (Illustrator), Kim Franklin (Illustrator).

Revised Edition 2019. Original edition published 2017. This is a newer Australian bird field guide that I just got recently. It may be the best one out of all of them now. Though I still like the pictures better in "Simpson and Day" in terms of their artistic value, and that they just look more interesting to me than the drawings in any other bird field guide I've seen. This one has more "clinical" looking pictures. They are coloured artist-rendered drawings, not photographs. Though the more "clinical" look is meant to be more anatomically accurate, and better for identification.

The rest of the book is wonderful, with different coloured regions on the range maps, and very high quality information overall. It was the winner in its category for an Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) award for book of the year in 2018.

Purchase from Australia (The Nile)

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Purchase from Amazon.com (USA Site)

Purchase from Amazon.com.au (Australian Site)

See Also

Australian Bird Field Guides

Return to Australian Birds
Return to Site Map

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Red-whiskered Bulbul - Pycnonotus jocosus

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