Abbott's Babbler

Abbott's babbler (Malacocincla abbotti) is a species of bird in the family Pellorneidae. It is widely distributed along the Himalayas in South Asia and extending into the forests of Southeast Asia. They are short-tailed and stout birds which forage in pairs in dense undergrowth close to the ground and their presence is indicated by their distinctive calls. The adult Abbott's babbler is a nondescript, brown, short-tailed babbler that moves about in the low vegetation often near streams and in the vicinity of tree ferns and tangled vegetation. The throat is gray-white while the center of the belly is white, and the flanks are olive. The undertail coverts are rusty-colored. The sexes are alike. It has a short tail and heavy bill; it is drab olive-brown with bright rusty lower flanks and vent, a grayish-white throat and breast, and variable pale gray supercilium and lores. Juvenile birds have dark rufescent-brown crowns and upperparts. The calls are distinctive. The subspecies M. a. krishnarajui of the Eastern Ghats has a darker russet tail and rump than the Himalayan nominate subspecies. Specimens measure 12–13 cm in length.