Velvet-fronted Euphonia

Rather dull buffy ground-dwelling bird with a large but disjunct range from Panama to Argentina. Streaky brown above and paler below with a streaked breast and plain belly. Note long pinkish legs and white outer tail feathers. Found in any flat open habitat including savannah, agricultural areas, and desert. Most often seen on the ground, occasionally perched up on a small shrub or fence. The only pipit in most of its range. Listen for the distinctive song, a few tick notes followed by a long descending buzzy “tzeeeeeeew,” often given in flight.

Rather plain medium-sized warbler: warm brown above with narrow pale spectacles, pale buffy below. Can be very difficult to separate from other reed warbler species. Most populations breed in reed or sedge beds, both pure and mixed with bushes, often wandering to adjacent scrub and thickets. “Mangrove” Reed Warbler is a resident in mangroves along the Red Sea. Non-breeding migratory birds may wind up in a wide range of habitats, from marshes to mangroves, to acacia scrub and cultivation. Often heard but can be hard to see: prolonged song much like Sedge Warbler but more even-paced and melodic, without rough and jerky phrases. Calls include a low “chuk” and rattled “chrrt.”

Small short-tailed antbird found around still and slow-moving water in humid forest. Medium gray; tail black, with a broad white terminal band. Males have a black throat; females are lighter underneath. Forages low at the water’s edge and in vegetation overhanging the water around oxbow lakes and streams. The male’s song is an ascending series of whistles accelerating into a harsh descending series; it can be attention-grabbing with its grating snarling ending.