What to Know About the Green Hylia in Uganda?

The Green Hylia in Uganda is one of the African birds in Uganda seen during Uganda Birding Watching Tours. It is a monotypic genus widely spread in the African tropic, where it mostly inhabits the scrub and mid-stratum of moist forests.

It is a canopy insectivore that has been usually but not yet conclusively placed within the family of Cettiidae warblers.

How Does the Green Hylia in Uganda Look Like?

Green hylia have black brown irises, dark bill, olive-green legs and feet. It is a small bird of about 14 grams in weight.

Both female and male are similar, but males are slightly larger. Green hylias have two subspecies namely; H. p. prasina and H. p. poensis.

These species differ in color beneath the throat. H. p. prasina has olive-green throat, chin and olive-grey underbelly while the H. p. poensis has a white-grey throat and underbelly.

How Does the Green Hylia in Uganda Sing and Make Calls?

The green hylia makes numerous diverse calls, but usually clear whistles “kee kee” or dry scolding rattles “trrit trrrit”.

The Green hylia is famous for its familiar, pure, two-note song. it uses alarm calls to confuse nearby predators and make it difficult for predators to locate exactly where the call is coming from!

How does the Green Hylia in Uganda Feed?

The green hylia is a foliage-gleaning insectivore of the canopy and forest understory, usually foraging at a height of about 10 meters.

Its diet includes insects, ants or butterflies which are accessible in its feeding area, on the underside of leaves or amongst forest litter.

The species is considered a forest generalist as it is capable of surviving in a wide range of environmental conditions.

How does the Green Hylia in Uganda nest?

Their nest is set in a suitable location, a short distance from the ground, like on the vertical forks of young palm trees.

The nest is usually egg-shaped and rounded with approximately a 20mm round opening at the top. Nests are friable, made up of loose tufts of plant materials which are not compacted.

The length of the nest is about 150 mm from top to bottom and 90 mm side to side and front to back.

How does the Green Hylia in Uganda Breed?

The green hylia is usually observed alone or in a mating pair. Mating pairs roost together in their nest. The eggs are white and otherwise not very distinctive.