Southern Shrikebill

A standard Scytalopus tapaculo: plain dark gray with browner flanks and rump. Acts like a mouse, scurrying around on or near the ground within montane forest. Extremely limited range in the central Andes of Colombia. Far more often heard than seen. Listen for froglike churring song, given as a long series of short bursts.

A colorful songbird, green above, white below, with orange face, pale yellow breast band, black lateral crown stripes, and sparse black streaking on the throat. Sometimes difficult to see in dense bamboo habitats in hilly areas, where first detected by voice. Forages in groups or among mixed-species flocks. Song is a series of high, thin whistles; contact calls heard from foraging birds are twittering, cricket-like notes.

Dark sooty leaf warbler with a pale brow stripe and no wingbars. Yellow wash to the underparts tends to be absent in worn birds. Extremely similar in appearance to Dusky Warbler, which averages larger and darker overall, and has a longer, brighter brow stripe. Breeds in scrubby areas above the treeline and moves downhill into shrubby and grassy foothill and lowland areas. Forages low on the ground, often around rocks or water. Song is a repetitive series of liquid notes. Calls are dry, hard “chuck” or “tick” notes.