Birdwatching in Thailand: The black barbet (Psilopogon oorti synonym: Megalaima oorti)

The black barbet (Psilopogon oorti synonym: Megalaima oorti) is a barbet found in tropical forests from South China to Sumatra and also in Thailand. The 'oorti' in the scientific name is a tribute by the species author Salomon Müller to his early deceased travel companion, the draftsman Pieter van Oort.

The black barbet is 20 cm long. Like the other Asian barbets, it has a rather plump build and is mainly green in colour. It has a large, dark colored beak with bristles at the base of the beak. This barbet resembles the golden-throated barbet (P. franklinii), but differs from it by a distinct dark, broad eyebrow stripe and a blue spot behind the eye. The throat is yellow and the blue of the head extends slightly to the chest, where a red band separates the green from the rest of the chest.

The black barbet is a resident bird of hill country forest in low mountain ranges at an altitude between 900 and 1500 m above sea level. The bird has a large distribution area and because of that alone the chance of extinction is small.