Red cheeks in Mauritius - the red-whiskered bulbul

Mauritius was home to the infamous dodo, now extinct. But it has a vast range of coastal, water, and inland birds from parrots to flamingos.

The red-whiskered bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus) is a tropical bird commonly found in forests and urban areas across Asia, India and Mauritius. It has also spread to Australia, particularly along the south-eastern coastal areas.

It is a medium-sized bird of about 20 centimetres (8 inches) with black, white and brown markings. It has a distinctive pointed black crest with red cheeks and a thin black moustache.

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Martina Nicolls is an Australian author and international human rights-based consultant in education, healing and wellbeing, peace and stabilization, and foreign aid audits and evaluations. She lives in Paris.

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