Yellow-tailed Oriole

Brightly-colored adult male is unmistakable in range: blazing sapphire blue with orange flanks and white throat and belly. Female is brown with a white throat, orange flanks, and pale blue rump and tail. Red-flanked Bluetail can be confusing where the two overlap in the latter’s migratory and winter range; note Himalayan’s brighter blue eyebrow and brighter, deeper blue upperparts in the male. Female is slightly more grayish than Red-flanked, but this identification can be much more difficult, and females may not be safely separable if not with male. Himalayan’s song is a simple, repeated “tcher-thcew-wee!”. Breeds in submontane forest up to the treeline; descends in the winter, often moving into edge habitats. A frequent sight along forest tracks.

Fairly small, slim cuckooshrike in which males and females are strikingly different. Males have dark gray upperparts, pale gray underparts, and black wings and tail. Females have brown upperparts, a whitish throat, and otherwise rufous underparts. Both sexes have pale marks at the tip of the tail. The juvenile is a drastically different-looking brownish bird with strong wing bars and unmarked buff underparts. Rare and local in remnant patches of humid forest on the island of Mauritius. The song is a quick, slightly accelerating series of nasal whistles. Within its small range, most similar to Mauritius Bulbul, but easily separated by many details, including the lack of an orange bill. 

Crossed bill tips give crossbills their name. Only found in pine forests of Scotland, where uncommon and local. As a rule, not safely identified in the field because it looks intermediate between smaller-billed Common (Red) Crossbill and bigger-billed Parrot Crossbill (both of which can occur in same areas). With experience (and computer analysis!), may be identified by voice. Like other crossbills, found in pairs or flocks feeding quietly on pine cones or calling excitedly before taking off in wide-ranging, bounding flight. Male plumage reddish overall; female grayish green overall, with brighter rump.