Blue-rumped Pitta

The blue-rumped pitta is a shy, round-bodied ground bird with a short tail and a strong bill. Both sexes are mainly earthy brown below with a moss-green back and conspicuous powder-blue on the nape and rump. The male shows brighter and more extensive blue and green than the female, whose upperparts are comparatively subdued. A grey-brown face helps separate it from the blue-naped pitta, which lacks blue on the crown and rump (eBird species account).

The species occurs in southern China, eastern Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, where recognised subspecies occupy northern, central and southern parts of the country. Its habitats include seasonal tropical forest and moist montane forest, and photographed Vietnamese birds have also been recorded on the floor of deciduous and evergreen forest at Cát Tiên National Park. It usually remains concealed at ground level; a spaced series of simple, barbet-like notes may reveal its presence before the bird is seen (Wikipedia, general species account; eBird species account).