Western Orphean Warbler
Curruca hortensis
Large warbler with a dark head contrasting with white throat. Pale eye in adults. Told from Eastern Orphean Warbler by its browner (not gray) back and plain buffy (not spotted) undertail. Breeds in deciduous woodland and tall scrub, orchards, abandoned gardens, and riverine belts. Spends the non-breeding season in dry open habitats with sparse trees and scrubby plant cover. Song is simple and quite different from Eastern: "Turu turu turu turu.... liru liru turu." Call is a clicking "teck."
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Curruca hortensis
- Authority
- (Gmelin, JF, 1789)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Sylviidae
- Genus
- Curruca
Range and habitat
- Breeding range
- PAL : sw Europe and nw Africa
- Non-breeding range
- w Africa from Senegal to Chad
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- rising
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Yellow-chinned Spinetail
Certhiaxis cinnamomeus
Small, long-tailed spinetial that is rufous above and white below with a white eyebrow. Note the yellow chin, which can sometimes be difficult to see. Usually seen in pairs foraging in marshes, at the edges of mangroves and in damp grasslands. The song, usually given as a duet, is a loud rattle.
Whiskered Screech-Owl
Megascops trichopsis
Small owl restricted to oak woodlands in canyons and foothills in Mexico, barely reaching into southeast Arizona and southwest New Mexico. Finely patterned in gray, black, and white. Very similar to Western Screech-Owl; best distinguished by voice. Two song types: one a relatively even series of five to eight "toot" notes; the other sounds like morse code: "toot-toot, toot, toot, toot-toot, toot." Also note paler bill than Western Screech-Owl.
Spotted Redshank
Tringa erythropus
Elegant wader with a long fine bill and long reddish legs (dark on breeding adults). Striking breeding plumage dark overall. Nonbreeding plumage is paler and grayer than smaller and chunkier Common Redshank. In flight often appears dark overall with narrow white oval up middle of back. Breeds in arctic bogs and swamps; migrants occur in varied wetland habitats. Usually seen as singles or small groups, though will sometimes congregate in large flocks, especially on wintering grounds. Feeds mainly by wading in fairly deep water, probing and picking with its bill, at times swimming.
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