Yellow-thighed Brushfinch

Atlapetes tibialis

Unique sooty-gray bird with odd yellow tufts of feathers at the base of each leg. Darker black on head and wings. Rather hefty and long-tailed with sizable conical bill. Typically found close to the ground, working through low tangles and bushes in pairs or small groups. Prefers forest and edges. Sexes alike; juveniles lack yellow but overall color diagnostic (and usually in group with adults).

Taxonomy

Scientific name
Atlapetes tibialis
Authority
(Lawrence, 1864)
Order
Passeriformes
Family
Passerellidae
Genus
Atlapetes

Range and habitat

Migration
Resident species

Conservation

Population trend
stable

Photos

Distribution

Bird Calls

Other Birds

Orange-billed Lorikeet

Orange-billed Lorikeet

Neopsittacus pullicauda

A medium-sized, long-tailed parrot of upper-montane cloud forest and clearings. Predominantly green with a bright red patch from the chest to the belly, broadest in the chest. Orange bill and pale green streaks on the face. Readily seen flying in small flocks. Similar to Yellow-billed Lorikeet, but Orange-billed Lorikeet is usually found at higher elevations, is slightly smaller with an obviously orange bill and greenish undertail. Call, a ringing, high-pitch phrase “sik siruk!” or single “Sik!” note.

Papuan Parrotfinch

Papuan Parrotfinch

Erythrura papuana

A rather attractive small finch, mostly pale green with a red tail and a dull bluish-purple face. Found in evergreen forest and forest edge from 1200 to 2600 meters of elevation, rarely lower. Blue-faced Parrotfinch is similar but slightly smaller, with a slighter bill and more vivid coloration. The two do not often, if ever, overlap. Papuan’s common call is a thin, weak high-pitched “tsit tsit.”

Arabian Waxbill

Arabian Waxbill

Estrilda rufibarba

A mostly gray-and-buff barred waxbill with a crimson ‘bandit’s’ eye-patch and black tail and rump. A predominantly gray waxbill with buff-washed underparts and fine barring all over the body, as well as a crimson “bandit’s” eye-patch and black tail and rump. Bill is black, but has a red base during the breeding season. Female is darker below than the male, with a duller eye-patch. Juvenile is browner, less barred and has a dark eye-patch. A fairly common resident of riverine scrub, thickets on hillsides, waterside vegetation and agricultural cereal fields; typically forages in pairs and flocks. Calls a nasal “dzeet” often in concert with others, and a loud buzzing. Only waxbill with a red eye-patch on the Arabian Peninsula.

Start Your Bird Watching Journey

Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.