Violet-capped Hummingbird

A medium-sized, rotund owl often found during the day on exposed perches such as telephone wires. Brown overall with brown-barred underparts. Similar to Collared Owlet, but Asian Barred lacks false eye spots on the back of the head, has darker brown barring on the sides, and is larger. Calls (a long series of mellow toots) mostly at night, but can often be located during the day by the presence of mobbing songbirds. Found in a wide range of wooded habitats, including large parks and gardens.

Big-headed flycatcher of humid rainforest midstory. Rich red-brown with a slightly grayer head and pale eye. Perches with upright posture and appears rather stocky, with a short tail, large head, and heavy bill. Pale eye and fairly dark plumage help distinguish it from other attilas, as does voice. Listen for a rising series of whistles, usually finished with a lower note: “weer, weer, weer, weer, woo”; sounds melancholy, without the upbeat, double-syllable note phrasing of Bright-rumped Attila.

Small thrush-like bird with distinctive black-and-white tail pattern that is striking in flight. Breeding male has a black face, throat and wing, gray back and crown, and white underparts. Breeding female is duller, with a brownish crown and back, and usually a speckled blackish face and throat. Nonbreeding and immature birds are duller overall, though males retain their distinctive black throat. Breeds in the Atlas Mountains of northwest Africa, in areas of bare rock and short grass. Migrates south into the Sahel, where it spends the non-breeding season in a variety of open habitats such as grasslands and barren rocky plains. Tends to stay on the ground or on low perches. Jumbled-sounding song is quite variable, often including whistles, trills, and mimicry. Similar in appearance to Northern Wheatear, though male Atlas Wheatear is usually separated by its black throat. Separating females during migration and on the wintering grounds is usually difficult. Female Atlas Wheatear has a black “wingpit” and front part of the underwing, but this is hard to see in the field.