Common Tailorbird
Orthotomus sutorius
They 'sew' their nests by piercing leaf edges and pulling through plant fibers or spider silk to create a secure pouch.
- Scientific name
- Orthotomus sutorius
- Taxonomy
- Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Passeriformes › Cisticolidae › Orthotomus
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- forest
- Habitat
- Scrublands, deciduous forest edges, mangroves, and urban gardens.
- Diet
- Small insects, larvae, spiders, and occasionally flower nectar.
- Range
- India, Sri Lanka, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia
- Size
- 10 to 14 cm in length; weighs 6 to 10 grams.
- Lifespan
- 3 to 5 years
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Habitat fragmentation, domestic cat predation, and pesticide use.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless. These birds are active and vocal but easily startled. Keep a respectful distance, especially near stitched leaves which may contain nests. If you find a grounded fledgling, leave it be unless it is in immediate danger from cats.
The common tailorbird ( Orthotomus sutorius ) is a songbird found across tropical Asia. Popular for its nest made of leaves "sewn" together and immortalized by Rudyard Kipling in his Jungle Book , it is a common resident in urban gardens. Although shy birds that are usually hidden within vegetation, their loud calls are familiar and give away their presence. They are distinctive in having a long upright tail, greenish upper body plumage and rust coloured forehead and crown....
Photo: Parth Kansara, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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