Photos and Text by Beth Marlin Lichter
The Red-whiskered Bulbul is native to eastern India and Burma and has been a principal species in the Asian caged bird trade. In 1960, escapees from an aviary in Miami adapted well to living locally in the wild. Bulbuls thrive on insects, fruit-bearing shrubs, and the berries of warm weather exotic trees. Florida checks all the boxes with plentiful food sources and a lush ideal habitat for these birds.
In 1967 a Red-whiskered Bulbul flock (more escapees) took up residency at Huntington Botanical Gardens in Pasadena, California. Again, a brilliant location for success, providing ample fruit for year-round foraging, including a wide variety of tropical plants such as succulents and orchids. Bulbuls especially love to eat the delicate buds of orchid plants. Sadly, they are widely regarded as an invasive species despite their handsome appearance and engaging behavior.
How can a bird with so much energy, beauty and presence be so reviled? The answer is simple. They aggressively compete for space and for food and drive away native species. Farmers and gardeners are frustrated by the bulbul’s insatiable appetite for fruit, vegetables and flower buds.
The island of Oahu also boasts a large flock of escapee bulbuls, including the Red-vented Bulbul, largely responsible for spreading seeds of invasive plants. In other words, bulbuls are perceived as pests everywhere, albeit beautiful ones.
I was not confident that I would find them at the Huntington Gardens on 11/4/25, when I took a break from grandparent duties in Southern California, to do a bit of birding. I declared that my target bird for the day would be the Allen’s Hummingbird and tried to talk myself out of being fixated on finding the renowned bulbuls. In the end, I found both birds.
Much to my surprise, I heard the bulbuls almost immediately upon entering the gardens, having listened to recordings of their songs and calls, pre-walk on eBird. I followed their bold, beautiful voices down a slope to a small grove of trees where I encountered several birds berry-picking in the morning sun. All thoughts of their undesirable behaviors melted away, so delightful was the observance of their movement from tree to tree singing tirelessly while engaged in the procurement of ripe, juicy berries.
Egregious Interlopers or Magnificent Escapees? I loved you unconditionally for a brief moment in time, that November morning in Pasadena. I know you are guilty of brazen territorial trespasses, of flagrantly spreading the seeds of nasty invasive plants willy nilly, of intentionally pushing native birds out of their hereditary habitat. But that is not how I will remember you.
Click on this link and scroll down to the audio section to hear the Red-whiskered Bulbul song.
Vancouver Audubon 