Orange-billed Babbler

Open encyclopedia reference

The orange-billed babbler (Argya rufescens), also known as Ceylon rufous babbler or Sri Lankan rufous babbler, is a member of the family Leiothrichidae. The orange-billed babbler is a resident breeding bird endemic to Sri Lanka. In the past, it was considered to be a race of jungle babbler, Argya striata. Its habitat is rainforest, and it is rarely seen away from deep jungle. This species, like most babblers, is not migratory, and has short rounded wings and a weak flight. Although its habitat is under threat, it occurs in all the forests of the wet zone, and is quite common at prime sites like Kitulgala and Sinharaja. It builds its nest in a tree, concealed in dense masses of foliage. The normal clutch is two or three deep greenish blue eggs. These birds are plain orange brown below, and have a slightly darker shade above. The crown and nape are grey, and the bill is orange. The orange-billed babbler lives in flocks of seven to ten or more.

Wikipedia contributors, Orange-billed babbler; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:49:47.524724+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Argya rufescens (Blyth, 1847)

Name authority

(Blyth, 1847)

Common name

Orange-billed Babbler

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Passeriformes

Family

Leiothrichidae

Genus

Argya

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classAves
9. orderPasseriformes
10. familyLeiothrichidae Swainson, 1832
11. genusArgya R. P. Lesson, 1831
12. speciesArgya rufescens (Blyth, 1847)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Argya. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 113 records assigned to Leiothrichidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=1282069 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:LVWJ2. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.