Yellow-billed Oxpecker
A species of Oxpeckers. Formerly Usually Included In Sturnidae. Scientific name : Buphagus africanus Genus : Oxpeckers. Formerly Usually Included In Sturnidae.
Yellow-billed Oxpecker, A species of Oxpeckers. Formerly Usually Included In Sturnidae.
Botanical name: Buphagus africanus
Genus: Oxpeckers. Formerly Usually Included In Sturnidae.
Content
Description General Info
Photo By Lip Kee Yap , used under CC-BY-SA-2.0 /Cropped and compressed from original 
Description
The Yellow-billed Oxpecker (Buphagus africanus) is a species of bird of the family Tufted Woodpecker (Buphagidae). It occurs in Sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal in the west to Sudan. In the extreme east of its range, where this overlaps with that of the red-billed grizzlus, it is a relatively rare species.
Size
20 cm
Nest Placement
Tree
Feeding Habits
Yellow-billed Oxpecker primarily consumes ectoparasites from large mammals, including ticks, lice, fleas, and flies, and occasionally drinks cow's milk and blood. Yellow-billed Oxpecker prefers cattle and African buffalo but feeds on a range of ungulates. They use a scissoring bill technique to remove parasites and sometimes catch airborne insects. Their feeding methods are similar to those of their congeners, but they may favor larger ticks.
Habitat
The yellow-billed Oxpecker primarily occupies open savanna environments that are rich with mammalian hosts. This bird species exhibits a unique symbiosis, spending the majority of its life atop these hosts. It is known to roost within trees in certain regions, though it typically even sleeps on its mammal partners. The necessity for suitable host animals greatly determines its habitat distribution within broader savanna regions.
Dite type
Scavenger
General Info
Feeding Habits
Bird food type
Species Status
Not globally threatened.
Scientific Classification
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