Coppersmith Barbet on a Mango Tree in Mumbai

Saw a beautiful bird on a branch of a mango tree outside my window today while I was busy on a telephone call. While the call was still going on, I quickly brought my camera and recorded a short video.

It was a Coppersmith Barbet (I found out later :) who was carving a hole to build it's nest. After a minute or so of working hard, a crow sitting nearby could not contain it's curiosity and came over to see what the Barbet was up to.

We are truly lucky to be living close to Aarey Milk Colony and get a lot of such beautiful visitors

The coppersmith barbet, crimson-breasted barbet or coppersmith (Psilopogon haemacephalus), is a bird with crimson forehead and throat which is best known for its metronomic call that has been likened to a coppersmith striking metal with a hammer. It is a resident found in the Indian subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia. Like other barbets, they chisel out a hole inside a tree to build their nest. They are mainly fruit eating but will take sometimes insects, especially winged termites (Wikipedia)

Official Bird of of Mumbai!

Also found out that the Coppersmith Barbet was voted as the official bird of Mumbai in 2011

The previous visitor we had greeted was a fruit bat on the same tree while devouring a mango!