The bristlebills are a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

''Bleda'' of

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped') which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines generally have an anisodactyl arrangement of their ...

birds in the

bulbul The bulbuls are members of a family, Pycnonotidae, of medium-sized passerine songbirds, which also includes greenbuls, brownbuls, leafloves, and bristlebills. The family is distributed across most of Africa and into the Middle East, tropic ...

family

Pycnonotidae The bulbuls are members of a family (biology), family, Pycnonotidae, of medium-sized perching bird, passerine songbirds, which also includes greenbuls, brownbuls, leafloves, and bristlebills. The family is distributed across most of Africa and in ...

. They are found in the forest understorey of western and central Africa. They forage for insects at or near ground-level, often near water. They will follow

driver ant ''Dorylus'', also known as driver ants, safari ants, or siafu, is a large genus of army ants found primarily in central and east Africa, although the range also extends to southern Africa and tropical Asia. The term siafu is a loanword from Swa ...

swarms to catch prey items fleeing from the ants and they frequently join

mixed-species feeding flock A mixed-species feeding flock, also termed a mixed-species foraging flock, mixed hunting party or informally bird wave, is a flock of usually insectivorous birds of different species that join each other and move together while foraging. These ar ...

s. They are 18–23 cm long with fairly long, stout

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Pl ...

s. The upperparts are mainly green-brown while the underparts are yellow. The birds have whistling

songs A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usuall ...

. The nest is made of leaves or sticks and built in a shrub or small tree. Two eggs are laid.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Bleda'' was introduced in 1857 by the French naturalist

Charles Lucien Bonaparte Charles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte, 2nd Prince of Canino and Musignano (24 May 1803 – 29 July 1857) was a French naturalist and ornithology, ornithologist, and a nephew of Napoleon. Lucien and his wife had twelve children, including Cardinal ...

with the

red-tailed bristlebill The red-tailed bristlebill (''Bleda syndactylus'') or common bristlebill, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is widely present throughout the African tropical rainforest. It prefers primary over secondary forests. T ...

as the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

. The genus was named after

Bleda Bleda () was a Hunnic ruler, the brother of Attila the Hun. As nephews to Rugila, Attila and his elder brother Bleda succeeded him to the throne. Bleda's reign lasted for eleven years until his death. While it has been speculated by Jordanes th ...

, elder brother of

Attila Attila ( or ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in early 453. He was also the leader of an empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, and Gepids, among others, in Central Europe, C ...

and joint ruler of the

Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th centuries AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was par ...

Species

The genus contains five species:

Former species

Formerly, some authorities also considered the following species (or subspecies) as species within the genus ''Bleda'': *

Kakamega greenbul Kakamega greenbul (''Arizelocichla kakamegae''), is a species of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is native to the Lake Victoria region. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical moist montan ...

(as ''Xenocichla kakamegae'') *

Olive-breasted greenbul The Kikuyu mountain greenbul (''Arizelocichla kikuyuensis''), also known as the olive-breasted greenbul, is a species of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is native to the Lake Victoria region. Taxonomy and systematics The Kikuyu mountain ...

(as ''Xenocichla kikuyuensis'') *

Mountain greenbul The black-headed mountain greenbul (''Arizelocichla nigriceps''), also known as the mountain greenbul or eastern mountain greenbul, is a species of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is native to the eastern Afromontane. Its diet consists o ...

(as ''Xenocichla nigriceps'') *

Black-browed greenbul The black-browed mountain greenbul (''Arizelocichla fusciceps''), formerly the black-browed greenbul, is a species of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is found in south-eastern Africa from south-western Tanzania to north-eastern Zambia, ...

(as ''Xenocichla fusciceps'') *

Yellow-throated greenbul The yellow-throated mountain greenbul (''Arizelocichla chlorigula''), also known as the yellow-throated greenbul, is a species of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is native to the Eastern Arc Mountains of Tanzania. Taxonomy and systemati ...

(as ''Xenocichla chlorigula'') * Stripe-cheeked greenbul (as ''Xenocichla milanjensis'') *

Stripe-faced greenbul The olive-headed greenbul (''Arizelocichla striifacies'') is a species of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is native to the eastern Afromontane. Taxonomy The olive-headed greenbul was species description, formally described in 1895 by th ...

(as ''Xenocichla striifacies'') *

Sjöstedt's greenbul Sjöstedt's greenbul (''Baeopogon clamans'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in western and central Africa. Taxonomy and systematics Sjöstedt's greenbul was originally described in the genus ''Xenocichla ...

(as ''Xenocichla clamans'') *

Yellow-throated leaflove The yellow-gorgeted greenbul (''Atimastillas flavicollis''), formerly known as the yellow-throated leaflove, is a species of passerine bird in the bulbul family Pycnonotidae. It is found in West Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tr ...

(as ''Xenocichla flavicollis'') *

Uganda yellow-throated greenbul The yellow-gorgeted greenbul (''Atimastillas flavicollis''), formerly known as the yellow-throated leaflove, is a species of passerine bird in the bulbul family Pycnonotidae. It is found in West Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tro ...

(as ''Xenocichla pallidigula'') * Gabon leaflove (as ''Xenocichla orientalis'') *

Placid greenbul Cabanis's greenbul (''Phyllastrephus cabanisi''), also known as Cabanis's bulbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in east-central and south-central Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical ...

(as ''Xenocichla placida'') *

Xavier's greenbul Xavier's greenbul (''Phyllastrephus xavieri'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in central Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical moist lowland fore ...

(as ''Xenocichla Xavieri'') *

White-throated greenbul The white-throated greenbul (''Phyllastrephus albigularis'') or white-throated bulbul, is a species of passerine bird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is widespread across the African tropical rainforest. It was formerly considered to be c ...

(as ''Xenocichla albigularis'') * Yellow-streaked greenbul (tenuirostris) (as ''Xenocichla tenuirostris'') *

Sharpe's greenbul Sharpe's greenbul (''Phyllastrephus alfredi'') or the Malawi greenbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in Africa in south-western Tanzania, north-eastern Zambia and northern Malawi. Taxonomy and systemat ...

(as ''Bleda alfredi'') *

Grey-headed greenbul The grey-headed greenbul (''Phyllastrephus poliocephalus''), or grey-headed yellow-bellied greenbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is native to the Western High Plateau. Its natural habitats are subtropical or t ...

(as ''Xenocichla poliocephala'') *

Lowland tiny greenbul The lowland tiny greenbul (''Phyllastrephus debilis''), is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in eastern Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical ...

(as ''Xenocichla debilis'') *

Yellow-bearded greenbul The yellow-bearded greenbul (''Criniger olivaceus'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in western Africa. Taxonomy and systematics Alternatively, the yellow-bearded greenbul has been classified in the genus ...

(as ''Xenocichla olivacea'')

Taxonomy

Species

Former species

References

Further reading