Psilopogon malabaricus
Silhouette: Vijay Cavale (photo), John E. McCormack, Michael G. Harvey, Brant C. Faircloth, Nicholas G. Crawford, Travis C. Glenn, Robb T. Brumfield & T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The Malabar barbet (Psilopogon malabaricus) is an Asian barbet native to the Western Ghats in India. It was formerly treated as a race of the crimson-fronted barbet (Psilopogon rubricapillus). It overlaps in some places with the range of the coppersmith barbet (Psilopogon haemacephala) and has a similar but more rapid call.
This species can be told apart from the coppersmith barbet by the crimson face and throat. The call notes are more rapidly delivered than in the other species. This species is found in the Western Ghats from around Goa south to southern Kerala in moist evergreen forest mainly below 1200 m elevation. They are also found in coffee estates. They often visit fruiting Ficus species, joining flocks of green pigeon and mynas.
These birds are usually seen in pairs during the breeding season but are gregarious in the non-breeding season. In flight, their straight and rapid flight can resemble that of lorikeets. The breeding season is mainly February–March prior to the rains. The nest hole is excavated on the underside of thin branches. It takes about 18 days to excavate the nest. These nest holes... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Nagarhole National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Bandipur National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Eravikulam National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Mudumalai National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Malabar Barbet sighting in Bandipur National Park on a given day, based on 69 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 128th most-seen of the 256 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July–August and December–April
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Malabar Barbet in Bandipur National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May–June and September–November, the lowest months.
Between 3 and 6 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Malabar Barbet sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
3rd of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Malabar Barbet sightings, Bandipur National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Periyar National Park (India, about 50%) and Nagarhole National Park (India, about 20%).
Same genus: Psilopogon
The closest relatives of the Malabar Barbet that you can see in Bandipur National Park (genus Psilopogon, Typical Asian Barbets) are White-cheeked Barbet (about 50%) and Coppersmith Barbet (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Malabar Barbet is recorded against all the birds logged in Bandipur National Park (69 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
