Psilopogon nuchalis
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 ~80% in a week >90%
The Taiwan barbet (Psilopogon nuchalis), also known as the embroidered barbet, is a species of bird endemic to Taiwan. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the black-browed barbet (Psilopogon oorti) and placed in the genus Megalaima.
It is about 20 cm (7.9 in) long. The plumage is mostly green. The lore has a red spot. The ear-coverts and lower malar are blue. The throat is mustard yellow. The forehead is yellow. There is a black stripe above the eye. The beak is black and thick. The breast has a blue band and a red band. The belly is yellowish-green. The feet are greyish. The sexes are alike.
In Taiwan, the bird is known as the "five-colored bird" (Chinese: 五色鳥; pinyin: Wǔsèniǎo), referring to the five colors on its plumage. Because of its colorful plumage and that its call resembles that of a percussion instrument known as a wooden fish, the species is also referred to as the "colorful monk" (Chinese: 花和尚; pinyin: Huā Héshàng; Taiwanese Hokkien: hue-á huê-siūnn) by Taiwanese.
It is commonly found in forests at elevations of up to 2,800 m (9,200 ft). It feeds on fruits and insects. The breeding season is from... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taroko National Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Green World Ecological Farm | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 2 | 新光動物園 | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 3 | Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 4 | Edward Youde Aviary | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China | |
| 5 | Ocean Fantasy Museum | 🇹🇼 Taiwan |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Taiwan Barbet sighting in Taroko National Park on a given day, based on 890 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 11th most-seen of the 147 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.
January–February and November
In those months about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Taiwan Barbet in Taroko National Park on a given day, against about 20% in June–July and October, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Taiwan Barbet sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Only Taroko National Park, in our data
Taroko National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Taiwan Barbet sightings: about 40% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same order: Piciformes
The closest relatives of the Taiwan Barbet that you can see in Taroko National Park (order Piciformes, Woodpeckers and Allies) are Grey-capped Woodpecker (about 30%), Grey-headed Woodpecker (about 10%) and White-backed Woodpecker (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Taiwan Barbet is recorded against all the birds logged in Taroko National Park (890 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.
