Chestnut-throated Seedeater
Sporophila telasco
Fairly common in desert lowlands, favoring agricultural fields, weedy and grassy areas, and brushy hedgerows; often sings from prominent perches such as utility wires. Note small size but with a very stout, stubby bill. Male plumage variable; clean whitish and slate-gray overall with dark rusty chin in full breeding plumage, but often messy and mottled. Female is drab pale buffy with a streaked back; note her big, stubby pinkish bill.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Sporophila telasco
- Authority
- (Lesson, RP, 1828)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Thraupidae
- Genus
- Sporophila
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- rising
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds

Trocaz Pigeon
Columba trocaz
Endemic to the island of Madeira, where it is largely restricted to native laurel and tree heath forests. Body is largely gray with a purple-pink breast, and a noticeable silvery patch with black streaks on the side of the neck. The iris is yellow with a red ring around the eyes. Compare with the only other pigeon on the island, the Rock Pigeon; note differences in structure, color, and habitat preference. Song is a series of very low, groaning coos.

Yellow-wattled Lapwing
Vanellus malabaricus
Elegantly long-winged brown lapwing. Breeding adult has clean black cap, bright yellow facial wattles, and a white belly. Non-breeding adults and juveniles are more mottled overall and lack a solid black cap. Note contrasting wing and tail pattern when in flight. Prefers dry open areas, often well away from water. Gives a loud rasping tern-like call and a loud “cheeeee’it” in alarm; generally not as noisy as other lapwings.

Visayan Broadbill
Sarcophanops samarensis
A medium-sized bird of lowland forest on Bohol, Leyte, and Samar islands. Has a pale blue bill and deeper blue eye wattle, a black face, a streaked crown, a reddish-brown back, a dark wing with a pinkish to white wingbar, a thin white collar with some scaling above, and a reddish rump and tail. Underparts are white in the female and pinkish in the male. Makes short sallies for insects. Can be found in pairs, small groups, or sometimes mixed-species flocks. Unmistakable. Voice includes a plaintive whistle and a sharp “tyik!”
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