Red-faced malkoha
The red-faced malkoha (Phaenicophaeus pyrrhocephalus) is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes. This malkoha species is endemic to Sri Lanka.
This is a large species at 46 cm with a long graduated tail. Its back is dark green, and the upper tail is green edged with white. The belly and under tail are white, the latter being barred black. The crown and throat are black, and the lower face white. There is a large red patch around the eye and the bill is green. Sexes are similar, but juveniles are much duller. The red-faced malkoha takes a variety of insects including caterpillars, giant stick insects, mantises and small vertebrates such as lizard. It occasionally may eat berries but this needs confirmation.
Unlike most cuckoos, this is a quiet species, making only the odd soft grunt. It is endemic to Sri Lanka although some old records have apparently erroneously referred to its presence in southern India. The presence of red-faced malkoha in the island is largely confined to the Sinharaja Forest Reserve and the surrounding vegetation, which is one of the biodiversity hot spots in the world.
The red-faced malkoha is a bird of dense forests, where it can be difficult to see despite its size and colour. It nests in a tree, the typical clutch being 2-3 eggs. They are found in nearly half of the mixed-species foraging flocks in the Sinharaja area.
The common name for this species malkoha is the vernacular name for the bird in Sinhala language. Mal-Koha’translates to ‘flower-cuckoo'. The red-faced malkoha appears on Rs. 5 Sri Lankan postal stamps.
Brown-capped babbler
The brown-capped babbler measures 16 cm including its long tail. It is brown above and rich cinnamon below. It has a dark brown crown.
Brown-capped babblers have short dark bills. Their food is mainly insects. They can be difficult to observe in the dense vegetation they prefer, but like other babblers, these are noisy birds and their characteristic calls are often the best indication that these birds are present.
In Sri Lanka, this bird is known as parandel-kurulla (translates to ‘dried-grass (coloured) bird’) or redi diang (Onomatopoeic in origin) in Sinhala language. Brown-capped babbler appears on Rs. 4 Sri Lankan postal stamps.
Scaly thrush
The Sri Lanka thrush or Sri Lanka scaly thrush (Zoothera imbricata) is a member of the thrush family Turdidae. This bird is a non-migratory resident breeder found in south western wetlands of the island of Sri Lanka.
Zoothera imbricata was formerly treated as a race of the scaly thrush. It belongs in a group, possibly a super species, formed by that species and being smaller, longer billed and rufous.
The thrushes are a family, Turdidae, of small birds with a worldwide distribution. The family was once much larger before the subfamily Saxicolinae, which includes the chats and European robins, was split out and moved to the Old World flycatchers. The thrushes are small to medium-sized ground living birds that feed on insects, other invertebrates and fruit. A number of unrelated species around the world have been named after thrushes due to their similarity to birds in this family
Thrushes are plump, soft-plumaged, and small to medium-sized birds, inhabiting wooded areas, and often feed on the ground. The smallest thrush may be the forest rock thrush, at 21 g (0.74 oz) and 14.5 cm (5.7 in). However, the shortwings, which have ambiguous alliances with both thrushes and Old World flycatchers, can be even smaller. The largest thrush is the blue whistling thrush, at 178 g (6.3 oz) and 33 cm (13 in). Most species are grey or brown in colour, often with speckled under parts.
They feed on insects, but most species also eat worms, land snails, and fruit. Many species are permanently resident in warm climates, while others migrate to higher latitudes during summer, often over considerable distances.