Green Barbet
Stactolaema olivacea Groenhoutkapper Olivbartvogel
The very uncommon and elusive Green Barbet
© Mark Drysdale
The Green barbet occurs only in the Ongoye forest, KwaZulu-Natal. It is listed as threatened in southern Africa. Its diet is almost exclusively made up of fruit, especially figs, occasionally eating insects. Both sexes excavate the nest, which is usually a small chamber dug into a dead, decaying upright tree trunk. With one breeding pair, the female produces five eggs which are incubated by both sexes for 18 days. The chicks stay in the nest for 29 days.
Green Barbet
© Hennie Storm