Abbott's Babbler

Abbott's babbler usually moves around in pairs close to the ground. They breed from April to July (summer monsoon), with the nest being a carefully placed but bulky cup low in palms or other undergrowth. A study in Thailand found that most nests are placed in spiny palms and rattans. The usual clutch is 3 to 5 eggs which are bright salmon with dark blotches and red lines. When disturbed at the nest, the bird slip over the edge and fly with laboured wing beats and then hop out of sight. More than one brood may be raised in a season. Their distinctive calls consists of three or four notes with the a drop on the middle note. The antiphonal duet of a male and female has the male leading with a "poor'ol bear" followed by the females "dear dear". The tunes may however change over time. The birds tend to remain within a well marked area and do not wander widely. The song is a variable short series of around three to four notes of rich, fluty, liquid, slurred, short whistled notes; these are sometimes delivered haltingly and sometimes rapidly. The evening group song consists of a recurrent sputtering churrr sound, which is low and slurred; ending with a sharp chreep. Calls include soft mewing notes, and a pulsing, purring trill when agitated.

In South Asia, Abbott's babbler is resident from Nepal to Arunachal Pradesh and the Assam Valley in India, south throughout the South Assam hills, including Meghalaya and south through the Lushai Hills. It is also resident in east and south Bangladesh (around Jessore and Khulna), and the Eastern Ghats in North-east Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. It occurs up to 600 m (2000 ft), 275 m (900 ft) in Nepal. It is widely distributed across Southeast Asia. It is common across much of its large range. It is seen in the understory of broadleaved evergreen forest, forest edge, secondary growth and scrub. In Singapore, they have been noted as being tolerant to disturbance and adapting to secondary growth and disturbed forest.