Grey-breasted Prinia

Overview

The grey-breasted prinia (Prinia hodgsonii) is a small passerine bird found mainly in warmer southern regions of the Old World. It is a resident breeder across the Indian subcontinent, Sri Lanka, and southeast Asia.

Identification

• Distinguished by a smoky grey band across the breast that contrasts with a white throat in breeding plumage.
• Measures 11 to 13 cm in length with a longish, graduated tail that is grey and tipped with white.
• Features a short black bill, strong pinkish legs, and an orange eye-ring.
• Non-breeding plumage is paler with rufous wings and a weak supercilium, often lacking the breast band.

Habitat

Typically found in open woodland, scrub jungle, bushes, hedgerows amidst cultivation, bamboo jungle, mangrove swamps, and reeds. Its range extends from the Himalayan foothills to Southern India, including parts of Pakistan, Burma, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and southern China. Altitude ranges from sea level to 1,000 m, with the Himalayan subspecies reaching up to 1,800 m.

Diet

Insectivorous, feeding mainly on ants, small beetles, and caterpillars found among twigs and foliage. It also consumes nectar from blossoms of trees such as Erythrina and Bombax.

Did you know?

While foraging for nectar during summer, the bird's forehead is sometimes sprinkled with pollen, giving it an orange or yellowish head that can lead to mistaken identification.