An earlier post documented the different foods a pair of adult Yellow-vented Bulbuls (Pycnonotus goiavier) brought to the nest to feed the chicks LINK. Samson Tan’s observations made in March 2010 complement the earlier post LINK.
“Yellow-vented bulbul is one of the most common bird in Singapore. Even though it is so common, not many people have the chance to see how it feeds its chicks and what it feeds them with. As with many other birds, seeds of Dillenia suffruticosa or commonly known as simpoh air is one of the main source of food for the chicks (above left), wrote Samson. “Spiders have been sighted quite regularly too. At times the bulbul ‘hijack’ the food from spiders. This bee was strangled on spiders web when it was fed to the chick (above right).”
Other foods brought to the chicks include alate termites (above left), dragonflies (above right) and damselflies.
Samson Tan
Singapore
January 2012
