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Sri Lanka Endemic Birds

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Sri Lanka is home to 26 endemic bird species and seven proposed endemic species. BirdLife International recognizes Sri Lanka as one of the world’s Endemic Bird Areas (EBAs). The number of endemic species has changed many times over the years. This is largely due to “close taxonomic revisions”. The number of endemic species has fluctuated from a minimum 20 to a maximum 47. From 1977 the number settled at around 21. The figure was increased to 23 with the addition of two species in 1990. Many authorities have accepted this figure since then.

Wijesinghe published a checklist of the birds of Sri Lanka in 1994 which considered the addition of three more species, but this move did not receive widespread recognition because its rationale was not in keeping with rigorous taxonomic practice. Subsequent publications on the avifauna of Sri Lanka and the South Asia region have not listed these three as endemics. However, within Sri Lankan circles some considered the endemics proposed by Wijesinghe as acceptable. This may be due to an over-enthusiasm in increasing endemic numbers to create a better ornithological image and increase the demand for commercial birdwatching.

In 2001, Warakagoda and Rasmussen described a new bird species, the Serendib scops-owl (Otus thilohofmanni). This is the first new bird species discovered in Sri Lanka since 1868, when the Sri Lanka whistling-thrush (Myophonus blighi) was described.

Check out below Real Lanka bird watching tours to get the opportunity to meet the Sri Lanka endemic birds:

sri lanka endemic bird
Bird Name: Sri Lankan junglefowl (Gallus lafayettii)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests, scrub jungles. Very common. All zones
sri lanka endemic bird
Bird Name: Sri Lanka wood pigeon (Columba torringtoniae)
Status: Vulnerable
Distribution: Forests, gardens. Restricted range. Hill country. Descends to low country wet zone during fruiting seasons
sri lanka endemic bird
Bird Name: Sri Lanka hanging parrot (Loriculus beryllinus)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests, gardens. Common. All zones. More common in wet zone.
sri lanka endemic bird
Bird Name: Red-faced malkoha (Phaenicophaeus pyrrhocephalus)
Status: Vulnerable
Distribution: Forests. Confined to undisturbed forest areas in the wet zone and riparian forests of the dry zone. Restricted location. All zones.
sri lanka endemic bird
Bird Name: Serendib scops owl (Otus thilohoffmanni)
Status: Endangered
Distribution: Restricted range. Low country wet zone.
Bird Name: Crimson-fronted barbet (Psilopogon rubricapillus)
Status: Least Concernv
Distribution: Forests, home gardens. Very common. More common in hill country.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka grey hornbill (Ocyceros gingalensis)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests, gardens. Very common. All zones. Most plentiful in dry zone.
Bird Name: Black-capped bulbul (Rubigula melanicterus)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests, gardens close to forest, Common. Hill country.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka bush warbler (Elaphrornis palliseri)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Forest undergrowth. Restricted range. Hill country.
Bird Name: Ceylon scimitar babbler (Pomatorhinus melanurus)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests understory. Common. All zones.
Bird Name: Ashy-headed laughingthrush (Argya cinereifrons)
Status: Vulnerable
Distribution: Forests, mainly in understory and on the ground. Common. Wet zone. More in low country.
Bird Name: Spot-winged thrush, (Geokichla spiloptera)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Humid forest undergrowth. Common. All zones. More common in wet zone.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka drongo (Dicrurus lophorinus)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: tall forests of the wet zone ascending to at least to 1600 metres.
Bird Name: Dull-blue flycatcher (Eumyias sordidus)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Forests, home gardens, well-wooded ravines. Hill country. Also in humid locations in the Low country wet zone.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka myna (Gracula ptilogenys)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Forests. Common. Wet zone. More common in Low country.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka swallow (Cecropis hyperythra)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: A variety of open country habitats in both the lowlands and foothills in Sri Lanka, including farm fields and lightly wooded areas.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka woodshrike (Tephrodornis affinis)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Low country and hills up to about 1000 metres but commoner in the dry zone.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka spurfowl (Galloperdix bicalcarata)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Humid forests. Common. All zones, except Northern region
Bird Name: Layard’s parakeet (Psittacula calthrapae)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests, gardens. Common. Wet zone and some riparian forests dry zone.
Bird Name: Green-billed coucal (Centropus chlororhynchos)
Status: Vulnerable
Distribution: Undisturbed forests. Associated with bamboo and cane rushes. Restricted range. Low country wet zone and wet foothills.
Bird Name: Ceylon green pigeon (Treron pompadora)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: All zones, except Northern region
Bird Name: Chestnut-backed owlet (Glaucidium castanotum)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Forests, scrubs, cultivations. Restricted range. Wet zone and hill country.
Bird Name: Yellow-fronted barbet (Psilopogon flavifrons) 
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests, home gardens. Very common. More common in hill country.
Bird Name: Ceylon magpie (Urocissa ornata)
Status: Vulnerable
Distribution: Undisturbed forests. Restricted range. Wet zone.
Bird Name: Yellow-eared bulbul (Pycnonotus penicillatus)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Forests, gardens close to forest, Common. Hill country.
Bird Name: Ceylbrown-capped babbler (Pellorneum fuscocapillus)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests, scrub jungles. Ground level. Common. All zones.
Bird Name: Orange-billed babbler (Argya rufescens)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Forests. Common. Wet zone. Less in hill country.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka white-eye (Zosterops ceylonensis)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests, gardens, cultivations. Very common. Hill country.
Bird Name: White-faced starling (Sturnornis albofrontatus)
Status: Vulnerable
Distribution: Forests. Restricted range. Wet zone. Less in hill country.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka whistling thrush (Myophonus blighi)
Status: Endangered
Distribution: Undisturbed montane forests, streams. Restricted range. Hill country.
Bird Name: Sri Lanka scaly thrush (Zoothera imbricata)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Forests undergrowth. Common. Hill country, some locations in low country wet zone.
Bird Name: White-throated flowerpecker (Dicaeum vincens)
Status: Near Threatened
Distribution: Forests. Common. Low country wet zone and lower hill country
Bird Name: Greater Sri Lanka flameback (Chrysocolaptes stricklandi)
Status: Least Concern
Distribution: Forests but prefers the wet zone and the mountains, which it ascends to the highest elevations.

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