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The African red-eyed bulbul (Pycnonotus nigricans) is a bird found in South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. Dry bush and gardens in southwestern Africa. It eats fruit, insects and other small invertebrates and nectar. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

🏡 Where the African red-eyed bulbul lives

Dry bush and gardens in southwestern Africa.

🍽️ What it eats

• 🍎 Fruit60%
• 🐛 Insects & bugs20%
• 🌸 Nectar20%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

Hear the African red-eyed bulbul

Recorded by Dawie de Swardt (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC816920. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the African red-eyed bulbul

Where does the African red-eyed bulbul live?

The African red-eyed bulbul lives in South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. Dry bush and gardens in southwestern Africa.

What does the African red-eyed bulbul eat?

fruit (about 60%), insects and other small invertebrates (about 20%), nectar (about 20%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the African red-eyed bulbul endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from Africa

• Swainson's spurfowl
• White-faced whistling duck
• White-throated swallow
• White-browed scrub robin
• Arrow-marked babbler
• Three-banded plover

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.