Birds · Passeriformes · Pittidae
Western Hooded Pitta
Pitta sordida
The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary
The hooded pitta is a bird of the Asian forest floor with an extraordinary combination of colours: bright green, a black head with a chestnut crown, a yellow belly and a scarlet patch under the tail. Even so it is very hard to see: it moves by hopping through the leaf litter of the densest understorey and freezes at any noise.
Weight
42 g – 70 g
Size
16 cm – 19 cm
Lifespan
10 years
Diet
Insectivore
Feeds mainly on insects and other invertebrates.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
Solitary
Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.
Sighting difficulty
Easy
Fun facts
- Pittas are known as the jewels of the forest floor for their colouring, and are at the same time among the hardest birds to see: they move by hopping through the leaf litter in the closest understorey and freeze at the slightest noise.
- It is migratory over part of its range: the northern populations cross South-East Asia on nocturnal migration, and on the islands they pass over birds turn up disoriented by city lights.
- Its nest is a dome of twigs and leaves built on the ground, with a side entrance, almost indistinguishable from a pile of leaf litter.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
- Habitat & environment
- Floor of rainforest, bamboo forest and dense scrub of southern and South-East Asia
- Sexual maturity
- 12 months
- Gestation / incubation
- 16 days of incubation
- Litter / clutch size
- 4 eggs
Sources consulted: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_hooded_pitta
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapWhere to watch it
Parques y spots de buceo donde se ha documentado esta especie — se muestran 10 de 26 documentados.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Western Hooded Pitta — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Least ConcernCommon Flying Dragon
Draco volans
Little Spiderhunter
Arachnothera longirostra
Common Tailorbird
Orthotomus sutorius
Edible-nest Swiftlet
Aerodramus fuciphagus
Common Treeshrew
Tupaia glis
Chinese Hwamei
Garrulax canorus
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