Olive-backed Pipit
Anthus hodgsoni
Small pipit with a greenish-brown back and heavily streaked breast and belly that is often seen in loose flocks or in pairs. Note the distinctive facial pattern: broad pale lines surrounding the eye and a dark ear patch. Prefers more forested areas than other pipits, though will also forage in fields and scrubby edges. Can be tolerant of human activity and is not uncommon in rural areas and city parks in parts of their range. Calls are high-pitched “tseep’s,” often with a buzzy quality. Song is a beautiful series of warbling trills, whistles, and rattles.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Anthus hodgsoni
- Authority
- Blackwelder, 1907
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Motacillidae
- Genus
- Anthus
Range and habitat
- Breeding range
- PAL : w Russia to Kamchatka, Sakhalin and Kuril Is. (e Russia), n Korean Pen. and n, c Japan; disjunctly in Himalayas to ec China
- Non-breeding range
- OR : India through e China, Honshu to Ryukyu Is. (c, s Japan), Philippines
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Udzungwa Partridge
Xenoperdix udzungwensis
An unusual forest-dwelling partridge with a tiny range in the mountains of central Tanzania. The back is brown and barred, the underparts are gray with black scallops, and the bill is red. Found very locally in montane forest, especially in steep areas with bamboo. Somewhat similar to Scaly Francolin, but separated by smaller size and far more colorful markings. Most often detected by call: a repeated “kur-kur-kree” chant.
Yellow Longbill
Macrosphenus flavicans
An unusual warbler with a long bill and yellow eyes. Brownish above and dull yellow below with a gray head and whitish throat. Found in rainforest, mainly in dense tangles at middle levels, usually in pairs or small groups. Similar in appearance to other longbills, but with a good view, separated by the coloration of the underparts. Most often detected by the distinctive song: a long series of clear whistled notes in which each note is slightly lower in pitch. The pattern is similar to that of Sabine’s Puffback, and the individual notes sound very batis-like.
Black Goshawk
Astur melanoleucus
Large black-and-white goshawk. Most individuals have a white breast, but some have almost completely black underparts. Immatures have dark streaks below, over a white or rusty base color. Found in forest, woodland, thick savanna, and plantations. Calls are a long wail and an agitated scolding series. Dark-breasted birds similar to dark-morph Gabar Goshawk and Ovambo Sparrowhawk but are larger and have yellow legs and base of the bill. Somewhat similar to hawk-eagles, but much longer-tailed and faster in flight.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.