Bird of the Week – Black-collared barbet
The Zulu name is isiKhulukhulu and Afrikaans Rooikophoutkapper.
THE black-collared barbet is a common resident found from Jeffreys Bay in the Eastern Cape northwards throughout the whole of KZN, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Eastern and North of Botswana and South Africa.
These barbets enjoy coastal bush, woodland, forest edge, riverine forest, parks and gardens.
Their song is a loud ‘two-puddly, two-puddly’ or ‘clean-collar, clean-collar’ sung in duet, the first bird giving the two immediately answered by the second bird with the puddly and repeated about eight times. These birds are highly vocal in summer, opening and closing their wings as they call.
LISTEN:
The flight of these barbets is fast and direct, with whirring wings. Their food preference is fruit, especially figs, and insects.
Breeding season is from August to April and they may rear four broods in a season. Two to five white eggs are laid in a excavated hole of a tree trunk or branch. Incubation usually takes 18 days and nestlings remain for 33 to 35 days.
WATCH:
The Zulu name is isiKhulukhulu and in Afrikaans, rooikophoutkapper.
