Orange-crowned Oriole

A small forest-dwelling songbird endemic to the South Island of New Zealand. Distinctive yellow head and yellowish to white underparts. Tends to stay high in the canopy, favoring tall native forest. Often encountered moving in small noisy family flocks, uttering loud staccato chattering calls and trills. Male has a musical canary-like song. Female gives a distinctive buzzing call. Adults can be seen feeding far larger Long-tailed Koel chicks, as this species is a favored host of that nest parasite. Easily distinguished from similarly-colored Yellowhammer by very different habitat use: Yellowhammer favors open farmland and scrub rather than mature forest.

An entirely green lorikeet with a small red patch on the chin, bordered with yellow. In flight, shows a green underwing with a yellow horizontal streak. Generally occurs in montane forest above 500 meters of elevation, most common above 1000 meters of elevation. Usually seen in flight. Similar Red-flanked Lorikeet differs in diagnostic bright red underwing with male having more red in the chin and a blue cheek, and female having a dark-streaked yellow cheek. Red-chinned is bigger and longer-tailed than pygmy- or hanging-parrots. Call is a high-pitched “pseet.”

Vibrantly bright green parakeet, frequently found in woodland, parks, and gardens, where it feeds mainly in trees. Nests in cavities, including holes in buildings. Easily overlooked if quiet, as the bright green plumage blends easily with foliage. Note the very long slender tail and bright red bill; male has narrow black-and-pink neck ring. Closely resembles the larger Alexandrine Parakeet, which has a wine-red patch on each shoulder. Like other parakeets, raucous and social, often appearing in noisy groups giving sharp screeching calls. Native to Africa and South Asia, introduced locally around the world, from Europe and the Caribbean to Japan and Hawaii.