Pogonornis bidentatus
The Double-toothed Barbet, *Pogonornis bidentatus*, is a strikingly colorful member of the African Barbet family (Lybiidae), renowned for its distinctive bill structure. Measuring approximately 20-25 cm (8-10 inches) in length and weighing around 60-80 grams, this medium-sized barbet sports a vibrant plumage of glossy black upperparts contrasting sharply with a brilliant scarlet head, throat, and breast. Its underparts are a clean white, sometimes streaked with black on the flanks. The most p...
This barbet primarily inhabits subtropical and tropical moist lowland forests, gallery forests, and dense woodlands, often found along watercourses. It typically occurs at low to mid-elevations.
Their diet is predominantly frugivorous, consuming a wide variety of wild and cultivated fruits, supplemented significantly by insects, particularly caterpillars, beetles, and ants, especially during the breeding season. They forage by gleaning from trees and shrubs.
Double-toothed Barbets are generally diurnal, active from dawn to dusk, often roosting in tree cavities at night. They are primarily arboreal, foraging by gleaning fruits and insects from foliage and branches. These birds are territorial, with pairs or small family groups defending their home ran...
The Double-toothed Barbet is a resident species widely distributed across sub-Saharan Africa, primarily within the equatorial belt. Its range extends from Sierra Leone and Liberia in West Africa, eastward through southern Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, and the Central African Republic. Further east, p...
Least Concern
- The 'double tooth' on its bill is not actually two teeth, but a prominent notch and a sharp projection on the upper mandible, used to hold and tear fruits effectively. - Despite its name suggesting a close relationship to Old World barbets, genetic studies have placed African Barbets in their o...