About Pellorneum malaccense (Hartlaub, 1844)
The mourning babbler, scientifically named Pellorneum malaccense, was previously known as the short-tailed babbler. It is a species of bird belonging to the ground babbler family Pellorneidae. This species is distributed across the Malay Peninsula, Anambas Islands, Sumatra, Banyak Islands, Batu Islands, Riau Islands, Lingga Islands, and the Natuna Islands. It was formerly classified as the same species as the glissando babbler (Pellorneum saturatum) and the leaflitter babbler (Pellorneum poliogene). Its natural habitat is tropical moist lowland forests. The mourning babbler is generally solitary, and does not join larger mixed-species flocks; instead it forages alone or in pairs. It forages on the ground in the forest understory, feeding on a variety of insects including beetles, grasshoppers, and ants. Like other babblers, it uses its foot to grasp food items, which is an unusual behavior for passerine birds. The mourning babbler is locally common in several areas within its range, but is classified as near-threatened due to the loss of lowland forest across its distribution.
