Aegithina tiphia
The Common Iora (*Aegithina tiphia*) is a vibrant and active passerine bird, renowned for its striking plumage and melodious calls. Measuring approximately 13-16 cm (5.1-6.3 inches) in length and weighing around 12-17 grams (0.4-0.6 ounces), it possesses a slender build with a relatively short tail. Males in breeding plumage are particularly eye-catching, featuring a bright yellow underside, black wings with prominent white wing bars, and a glossy black mantle and tail. Non-breeding males and...
Found in a variety of wooded habitats, including open forests, scrublands, plantations, orchards, and well-vegetated gardens, predominantly in tropical and subtropical lowlands up to moderate elevations.
Primarily insectivorous, feeding on a wide range of invertebrates such as caterpillars, ants, beetles, spiders, and grasshoppers, supplemented occasionally by nectar or small berries. They forage actively by gleaning and probing foliage.
Common Ioras are diurnal and highly active birds, constantly flitting through foliage and branches. They forage by gleaning insects and spiders from leaves, twigs, and bark, often hanging upside down or adopting acrobatic postures to reach prey. They are generally territorial during the breeding ...
The Common Iora boasts an extensive geographic distribution across the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Its breeding range spans from India and Sri Lanka eastward through Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, extending south through the Malay Peninsula to Sumatra, Borneo, Java, a...
Least Concern
- The male Common Iora has a spectacular 'puff-ball' courtship display where it fluffs up all its body feathers, resembling a soft sphere, before launching into an undulating flight or vertical plunge. - There are over a dozen recognized subspecies of the Common Iora, each with subtle variations ...