Birds Guide

Leafbirds
C. cochinchinensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia   Phylum: Chordata   Class: Aves   Order: Passeriformes   Family: Chloropseidae   Genus: Chloropsis Jardine & Selby, 1827
Species
See text.

The Leafbirds are a family of small passerine bird species found in India and southeast Asia. They are one of only two bird families that are entirely endemic to the Indomalayan ecozone. They were formerly grouped with the ioras in the family Irenidae.

These are bulbul-like forest birds, but whereas that group tends to be drab in coloration, leafbirds are sexually dimorphic, with the males being brightly plumaged, usually in greens and yellows.

Leafbirds eat fruit and nectar with some insects. They have a spiked tongue, adapted to nectar feeding. They lay 2-3 eggs in a tree nest.

• Family: Chloropseidae
  • Philippine Leafbird, Chloropsis flavipennis
    Yellow-throated Leafbird, Chloropsis palawanensis
    Greater Green Leafbird, Chloropsis sonnerati
    Lesser Green Leafbird, Chloropsis cyanopogon
    Blue-winged Leafbird, Chloropsis cochinchinensis
    Golden-fronted Leafbird, Chloropsis aurifrons
    Orange-bellied Leafbird, Chloropsis hardwickii
    Blue-masked Leafbird, Chloropsis venusta

External links

• Leafbird videos on the Internet Bird Collection