Pellorneum ruficeps
Silhouette: Rachael Joakim · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The puff-throated babbler or spotted babbler (Pellorneum ruficeps) is a species of passerine bird found in Asia. They are found in scrub and moist forest mainly in hilly regions. They forage in small groups on the forest floor, turning around leaf litter to find their prey and usually staying low in the undergrowth where they can be hard to spot. However, they have loud and distinct calls, including a morning song, contact and alarm calls. It is the type species of the genus Pellorneum which may, however, currently include multiple lineages.
Puff-throated babblers are brown above, and white below with heavily brown streaks towards the breast and belly. They have a chestnut crown, long buff supercilium and dusky cheeks. The throat is white, and is sometimes puffed out giving it the English name. Puff-throated babblers have strong legs, and spend a lot of time on the forest floor. They can often be seen creeping through undergrowth in search of their insect food, looking at first glance like a song thrush. Some subspecies have streaks on the mantle while others, especially in Peninsular India, are unstreaked.
The widespread distribution with population variations has... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 2 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 3 | Khao Luang National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 4 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 5 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Periyar National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 8 | Bandhavgarh National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Mudumalai National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 11 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 12 | Nagarhole National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 13 | Bandipur National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 14 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 15 | Kaziranga National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 16 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 17 | Khao Sok National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 18 | Satpura National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 19 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 20 | Namdapha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 21 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 22 | Eravikulam National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 23 | Taman Negara National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Puff-throated Babbler sighting in Cuc Phuong National Park on a given day, based on 157 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 14th most-seen of the 159 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Puff-throated Babbler in Cuc Phuong National Park on a given day, against about 20% in May and October, the lowest months. That is one of Cuc Phuong National Park's driest months, with about 40 mm of rain against 390 mm in August. July has too few records to rate.
Between 3 and 6 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Puff-throated Babbler 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.
2nd of 23
Of the 23 parks where we can rate Puff-throated Babbler sightings, Cuc Phuong National Park ranks 2nd at about 40%. The best odds are in Kaeng Krachan National Park (Thailand, about 50%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Puff-throated Babbler is recorded against all the birds logged in Cuc Phuong National Park (157 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.
