Red-fronted Antpecker
Parmoptila rubrifrons
A small, slender-billed warbler-like waxbill with pinkish-brown legs and different-looking sexes: the male has a red forehead, dull brown upperparts, light scaling on the face, and rusty-chestnut underparts, while the female has pale underparts with scattered dark chevrons, mostly brown upperparts, and a white-speckled head. Pairs and small groups forage alone or in mixed-species flocks, in the understory and middle levels of primary and swamp forest, often near water. Eats insects, with a fondness for ants. Call is a high-pitched downslurred “peeeee.”
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Parmoptila rubrifrons
- Authority
- (Sharpe & Ussher, 1872)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Estrildidae
- Genus
- Parmoptila
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
Purple-backed Fairywren
Malurus assimilis
A small bird with a very long blue tail that is held cocked. Breeding male has a bright pale-blue helmet, black breast, purple back, and chestnut shoulders. Small pale tips are sometimes visible on the tail. Over much of the species’s inland range, females are overall grayish birds with pale fronts and long blue tails; however, females of the subspecies found in the sandstone regions of the Kimberley and Arnhem Land have contrasting blue crowns and backs. This species occurs over much of arid inland Australia and is found in open vegetation.
Richard's Pipit
Anthus richardi
Large, robust, almost thrushlike pipit given the big bill, long and pale eyebrow, and long tail. If perched off the ground the very large hind claws and long legs are obvious. Flight is strong, heavy, and bounding. Utters "pshee" call when flushed. Found in open grasslands, stubble fields, farmland, dunes, and salt marshes. Separation from other large pipits can be difficult; pay attention to call and wing pattern.
Helmeted Hornbill
Rhinoplax vigil
Bizarre-looking bird, now very rare due to poaching for the ivory-like material of its bill. When perched, its most recognizable feature is the naked throat pouch which resembles an undercooked steak, chalky white in the female and dull scarlet in the male. When in flight, its long trailing central tail feathers easily distinguish it from any other hornbill. Scarce and difficult to see; listen for its far-carrying maniacal laugh in mature lowland and foothill forests.
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