Indian Blue Roller
Scientific Name: Coracias benghahwsis
Origin: Asia
Description:
Size: 10 cm (4 in)
COCK:
Body: olive green. Breast and stomach: black with white spots. Facial mask: orange-red. Beak: black. Legs: cream.
HEN:
The hen looks similar to the male specie, but its facial mask is golden beige.
Diet: (Seedeater)
Mixed millets form the staple diet. Millet prays are enjoyed and live food is also necessary. Mealworms and maggots may be fed, if available, and spiders and small smooth caterpillars are very popular with this species. Grit and cuttlefish bone must always be available.
Breeding:
The cock performs his courtship display on the ground, dancing around the hen with a feather in his beak. The hen responds by wagging her tail sideways. A pair should be provided with globular, wicker baskets hung in a well-planted aviary. During the breeding season this bird must have live food and only rears young if plenty of insects are provided. The aviary should be well protected from inclement weather at all times.
An average clutch of eggs numbers three. The incubation period is 13 days and both parents take turns in sitting. Egg-rearing food, soaked seed, and soaked bread are useful for helping to feed the young. They fledge in three weeks.
This medium-sized soft bill may be kept in harmony in a large aviary with other species, particularly jays, and several members of its kind, providing that all rollers in a collection are introduced to their accommodation together. This bird is riot aggressive with smaller species, despite its heavy build. However, it does sometimes emit rather harsh grating sounds which may not be enduring for the neighbors! Fortunately, it usually only makes a noise at the beginning of the breeding season.
Indian Blue Roller Information
- The continent of Africa is the real habitat of the rollers. 8 out of ten bird species of the roller family breed naturally in Africa. Apart from Africa roller birds are found in Western Europe, the South Asian regions, and the East Australian part of the world. The European roller or the Coracias garrulus breed occupies the western European part, the Dollar bird, or the Eurystomus orientalis is found in the Eastern regions while the Temminck’s Roller, or the Coracias temminckii, and the Azure Roller, or the Eurystomus azureus are found in the isolated regions of Indonesia.
- The Indian Blue roller also belongs to the roller family and their natural habitat mainly covers the subtropical South Asian regions ranging from Iraq to Thailand. In India, the bird is found in the foothills of the Himalayas, Southern and Western parts of India. You may spot the birds in the various Indian national sanctuaries like the Corbett National Park, Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary, Rajaji National Park, Muthanga Wild Life Sanctuary, Nagarhole National Park, and Khana National Park.
- The birds are generally found in open ground areas, cultivated land parks, and cities located in lower elevations. The presence of the Indian Roller is regarded as a good omen in India and the bird has earned the state bird of Karnataka.
See more: Java Sparrow