White-throated Shrike-Tanager

A medium-sized bird of montane forest canopy. Plump, with a bulge on the head and a somewhat narrow bill. Male is all black with some greenish iridescence in front of the eye, at the back of the wing and a yellowish edge to the mouth. The female is mainly olive green with rufous wings and tail. Male is similar to Short-tailed Paradigalla but lacks the yellow wattle. Female is similar to female Crested Satinbird and MacGregor’s Bowerbird but it is smaller, overall color is olive green rather than brown and lacks Crested Satinbird’s pale eye. Male gives a far-carrying, nasal whistle from an exposed perch.

Rusty edges to feathers and pale eyebrow in winter contrast with blackish feather bases. Breeding males are glossy black. Shorter tail than Common Grackle. Thinner bill than Red-winged Blackbird. Found in wooded swamps. Often in flocks; frequently mixes with Red-winged Blackbirds and Common Grackle in winter. Look for flocks perched at tops of trees bordering marshes and listen for their calls to help pick them out from large flocks of blackbirds.

Medium-sized wren with rufous upperparts and bold black-and-white barred underparts. Complex black-and-white face pattern. Sexes alike. Found in pairs or small groups, foraging in the lower levels of forests and shrubby edges.