Crimson-bellied Woodpecker

Astonishingly beautiful cotinga. Males are glossy black with white wings and tail. Females are gray with a lightly mottled breast and white edges to the flight feathers. Note the white eyes in both sexes. Occurs in humid forest, where it is usually detected perched high in the canopy or in fruiting trees at the forest edge. The call is a loud “purp.” The female is very difficult to separate from female Pompadour Cotinga, but ranges do not overlap.

Rare and poorly known seabird found in the Pacific Ocean well off the coast of Mexico. It breeds in the winter on small islets near Guadalupe Island, located 160 miles from the mainland, and disperses southward during other times of the year. Plumage is dark gray with a notched tail, white rump patch, and pale stripes on the upperwing. The rump patch is variable in extent, and on some birds may be split down the middle by gray feathers. Identification is extremely difficult due to its similarity with other species, especially Townsend’s Storm-Petrel and Leach’s Storm-Petrel. Remains at sea when not breeding; flies erratically and often patters the ocean with its feet.

A large, blackish, crow-like bird-of-paradise, endemic to Halmahera and adjacent smaller islands (not Obi and Bisa). Body is entirely blackish with paler, browner wings. Also often shows a thin line behind the eye. Shape is distinctive, with thin neck and small head with distinctive brow ridges. Juveniles are browner overall. Singles and pairs occupy canopy in forest, forest edge, and plantations in lowlands and hills. Brown cast to wings and head shape differentiate it from crows. In flight shows broad wings and an awkward, clumsy, hurried flight, unlike the slow flapping of crows. Calls include a hoarse “wek” and a high-pitched, nasal “we-huk.”