Yellow-vented Flowerpecker

Very small but stocky, quail-like bird of Patagonian steppe, sandy and stony plains in the Andes, coastal dunes, and deserts. Found in pairs or small groups; locally large flocks in nonbreeding season. Male has hooting song given from low mounds or fence posts, and sometimes during display flight. Flight is strong and fast; flushes with loud bleating chatters. Similar Gray-breasted Seedsnipe is larger, favors rockier Andean habitats, and has plain gray breast without diagnostic black Y pattern present on male Least Seedsnipes.

Medium-sized hummingbird with a rather limited range in southern Ecuador and northern Peru. Unmistakable: mostly emerald-green with a purple throat and a blue forecrown. Also note the fairly short, straight bill. Sexes similar, but female is slightly duller. Occurs at forest edge and shrubby areas from around 1,800 to 3,300 m. Visits feeders.

Sparrowlike ground dweller; crouches low to the ground and walks with pattering footsteps. Breeding male is a unique deep yellow-orange with black-and-white head pattern. Females and nonbreeding birds are more subtle but typically buffier than other longspurs. Also look for long wingtips, thin white eyering, and blurry streaks below. Breeds on Arctic tundra. In winter, look for small flocks in fields with short grass and exposed soil. Not found in mixed flocks. Rattle call similar to Lapland Longspur.