Yellow Honeyeater

A plump, small-headed, pigeon-like bird. At close range the male is identified by a combination of black-and-white bands just above bill and by a strong yellow eye-ring; the female is mottled with black, brown, and white. It prefers using patches of recently-burnt grassland near rocky areas in savanna. Largely inactive by day; large numbers synchronously gather at waterholes to drink, call, and socialize briefly at dusk before dispersing to forage throughout the night. Its distinctive calls are squeaky and bubbling: “oh NO, he’s gone and done it AGAIN!”.

Well-named, this uniformly deep-blue jay occurs locally in highland evergreen and pine-evergreen forest. Like most jays, usually found in groups, often in association with mixed-species feeding flocks that include orioles, woodcreepers, and other jay species. Most likely confused with southern forms of Steller’s Jay, which occur in the same areas. Steller’s has bold white face spots, darker plumage with barring on wings, and short crest (which can be held flat). Also note rather different voices.

Small, retiring quail of forest understory. Rarely seen, but can be located by listening for noisy rustling in the leaf litter as birds scratch like chickens. Prefers to run away rather than flush. Loud song often reveals its presence, given mainly early and late in the day: first few notes similar to Little Tinamou song, but then breaks into rollicking choruses that can be almost deafening if close by. Male has rusty face and gray body, female colors reversed, with gray face and rusty body.