The olive bulbul (''Iole viridescens'') is a species of songbird in the

bulbul The bulbuls are members of a family, Pycnonotidae, of medium-sized passerine songbirds, which also includes greenbuls, brownbuls, leafloves, and bristlebills. The family is distributed across most of Africa and into the Middle East, tropical As ...

family, Pycnonotidae. It is found from southern Myanmar to south-western Thailand and the

Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula (Malay: ''Semenanjung Tanah Melayu'') is a peninsula in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s and subtropical or tropical moist

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...

Taxonomy and systematics

Formerly, the olive bulbul was classified in the genera ''

Microscelis ''Microscelis'' is a former genus of bulbuls. The following species were classified within the genus ''Microscelis'' but are now assigned to ''Iole'', ''Hemixos'' or ''Hypsipetes'': * Olive bulbul (as ''Microscelis viridescens'') * Buff-vented ...

'' and ''

Hypsipetes __NOTOC__ ''Hypsipetes'' is a genus of bulbuls, songbirds in the family Pycnonotidae. Most of its species occur in tropical forests around the Indian Ocean. But while the genus is quite diverse in the Madagascar region at the western end of its ...

'' by some authorities. The synonym ''Hypsipetes virescens'' has also been used for the

Nicobar bulbul The Nicobar bulbul (''Ixos nicobariensis'') is a songbird species in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is endemic to the Nicobar Islands. Taxonomy and systematics The Nicobar bulbul was originally described in the genus ''Hypsipetes'' and many ...

and the

Sunda bulbul Sunda bulbul has been split into two species: * Javan bulbul, ''Ixos virescens'' * Sumatran bulbul The Sumatran bulbul (''Ixos sumatranus'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is endemic to Sumatra Sumatra is o ...

. Alternative names for the olive bulbul include Blyth's olive bulbul, Sumatran bulbul, and viridescent bulbul. The name 'olive bulbul' is also used as an alternative name by the

yellow-bearded greenbul The yellow-bearded greenbul (''Criniger olivaceus'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in western Africa. Taxonomy and systematics Alternatively, the yellow-bearded greenbul has been classified in the genus ...

and the

sulphur-bellied bulbul The sulphur-bellied bulbul (''Iole palawanensis'') is a songbird species in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is endemic to Palawan (Philippines). Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is not considered a thr ...

Subspecies

Three subspecies are currently recognized. The

Cachar bulbul The Cachar bulbul (''Iole cacharensis'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in north-eastern India and south-eastern Bangladesh. The Cachar bulbul was considered as a subspecies of the olive bulbul until it w ...

was also considered as a subspecies of the olive bulbul until it was split off and re-classified as a separate species by the

IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

in 2017: * ''I. v. viridescens'' - Blyth, 1867: Found in southern Myanmar and south-western Thailand * ''I. v. lekhakuni'' - ( Deignan, 1954): Found in southern Myanmar and south-western Thailand * ''I. v. cinnamomeoventris'' - Baker, ECS, 1917: Found on northern and central Malay Peninsula

References

olive bulbul The olive bulbul (''Iole viridescens'') is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found from southern Myanmar to south-western Thailand and the Malay Peninsula. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowla ...

Birds of Bangladesh Birds of Myanmar

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Pycnonotidae-stub