Forest Scimitarbill
Rhinopomastus castaneiceps
Odd, long-tailed, slender-billed bird. The birds in the western part of the range are brown-hooded. In the east, male birds can have a glossy green, brown, or whitish head, and females can show a brown or whitish head. Note the dark bill and legs. Found in humid forest. Usually in pairs or small groups of up to 10. There are two distinctive calls: a dry rattling given in chorus, and a mournful series of rising whistles. Similar to White-headed Woodhoopoe, but easily separated by the dark bill and legs.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Rhinopomastus castaneiceps
- Authority
- (Sharpe, 1871)
- Order
- Bucerotiformes
- Family
- Phoeniculidae
- Genus
- Rhinopomastus
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Magpie Mannikin
Spermestes fringilloides
Large waxbill with a big bill. Shows a black head, brown back, and black scallops along the sides of the breast. Found in bamboo, moist scrub, moist cultivation, lush savanna, and forest edge. Quite scarce across most of its range. Call is a descending “teeiw”. Superficially similar to Bronze Mannikin but larger and bigger-billed, with an all-black head and distinctive scallops along the breast sides.
California Quail
Callipepla californica
Small and rotund with obvious teardrop-shaped plumes protruding from forehead. Looks gray and brown at a distance, with white streaks on the sides and a scaly belly. Males have black face and longer, more curled crest than females. Usually seen in flocks running on the ground in open, scrubby habitats. Listen for frequent, three-noted call, audible at long distances. Separated from similar Gambel’s Quail by range; also note California has scaly belly with rusty (not black) patch and duller brown crown and sides. Native to western North America including Baja California; well-established introduced populations in Chile, Argentina, New Zealand, and Hawaii.
White-throated Laughingthrush
Pterorhinus albogularis
Warm brown with an ochre-colored belly and pure white throat, this laughingthrush is found in foothill forests along the Himalayas and in central China. Several other laughingthrushes also have pale throats, but none are as plain and unmarked above as White-throated. Gives high whistles, often from within cover. Common in foothill forests and edges but will also occasionally venture into parks and gardens.
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