Silver Breasted Broadbill

The Silver-breasted Broadbill (Serilophus lunatus) is found in tropical and subtropical broadleaved evergreen and semi-evergreen forests from 50 to 2230 m elevation in Southeast Asia from northeastern India and southeastern China south to Sumatra; altitudinal range apparently varies across the species’ geographic distribution. Silver-breasted Broadbills may also be found in mixed deciduous forests, including areas dominated by pine, oak, and bamboo, and sometimes on agricultural land and in gardens. The sexes are similar in appearance, but the female has a narrow silver band across the upper breast. Juveniles resemble adults, but have shorter wings and tail and somewhat darker plumage. Silver-breasted Broadbills are generally silent, with calls heard mainly around the nest. Robson (2005) describes the voice as a melancholy “pee-uu” (uu lower pitch) and a staccato trilled “kitikitiki". The diet consists of invertebrates, mainly insects. Birds forage in pairs or in groups of up to 20 (usually fewer) and may join mixed flocks foraging in the understory. The nest, built by both sexes (sometimes with helpers), is a pendant ball with a long loose “tail”; construction takes 5 to 10 days. The nest is typically placed 1 to 7 (usually 3 to 5) m high over open spaces such as roads or small streams. Clutch size is 2 to 7 eggs, usually 4 to 5 but reportedly 2 to 3 in peninsular Malaysia. Both sexes, sometimes with helpers, incubate eggs and feed chicks. The Silver-breasted Broadbill is a documented cuckoo host in southern Burma and Sumatra. This species is a year-round resident over most of its range, but is apparently an altitudinal migrant in the Himalayas. It was formerly very common over most of its range, but is now only locally common. It has not been recorded from Nepal since the 19th century and is rare and local in Bhutan. Populations are probably much much reduced from northeastern India to Burma. It is uncommon in northern Thailand, but fairly common in other parts of the country, where it still supplies the domestic cagebird market. Populations have significantly declined in Indochina, although the species is still being discovered in new localities. It is very rare in China and uncommon to locally common in the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra. Robson (2005) reported the geographic abundance of this species as uncommon to locally common in Southeast Asia with the exception of central Thailand, Singapore, and Cochinchina (=the southern third of Vietnam). (Bruce 2003 and references therein; Robson 2005)

Serilophus lunatus, commonly known as the Silver-breasted Broadbill or the Silver Breasted Broadbill, is a species of bird in the Order Passeriformes and Family Eurylaimidae. As its scientific name correctly implies, the Silver-breasted Broadbill is a species in the genus Serilophus.

Although the Silver-breasted Broadbill is currently in decline, the species still retains a vast amount of land and population. Species always have ups and downs, so the Silver-breasted Broadbill is still classified as Least Concern (LC).