Malabar barbet of alates), ants and small caterpillars. In Kerala, the fruiting trees were limited mainly to "Ficus" species, especially "Ficus retusa", "Ficus gibbosa" and "Ficus tsiela". When feeding on small fruits, they tend to perch and peck rather than to swallow the fruit whole. In the non-breeding season, they join mixed-species foraging flocks. Malabar barbet The Malabar barbet ("Psilopogon malabaricus") is a small barbet found in the Western Ghats of India. It was formerly treated as a race of the crimson-fronted barbet ("Psilopogon rubricapillus"). It overlaps in some places with the range of the coppersmith barbet ("Psilopogon haemacephala") and has a
North Malabar by native North Malabar families, irrespective of their ethno-religious background. Traditionally North Malabar has remained the source of an erstwhile aristocracy for many of the southern territories of Kerala through displacement and adoptions including the Travancore Royal Family. Northern Malabar identity and pride is often possessively guarded by its natives of all ethnic and religious backgrounds. Kottiyoor Vysakha Mahotsavam is a 27-day yearly pilgrimage commemorating the mythology of Daksha Yaga, which attracts thousands of Hindu pilgrims from the Malabar region. In the pre-democratic era, Marumakkathayam-matriliniality was widely prevalent among the natives of North Malabar and included both the Muslim and