Flame-breasted Sunbird
Cinnyris solaris
Spectacular male shows glossy blue-green throat and forehead, diagnostic orange breast and belly, and olive back. Female is dull olive with muted yellow underparts and sometimes a yellow eyebrow. Juvenile is a grayer version of female. Singles and pairs inhabit relatively open country, including sparse woods, scrub, and plantations in the lowlands and low hills. Confined to the Lesser Sundas. Female usually duller yellow beneath than female Olive-backed Sunbird, and Flame-breasted sometimes lacks an eyebrow, which is always present in Olive-backed. Song is a series of high-pitched repeated see-sawing whistles, “witchi-witchew,” as well as upslurred “twee” and “tsew” call notes.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Cinnyris solaris
- Authority
- (Temminck, 1825)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Nectariniidae
- Genus
- Cinnyris
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Green Warbler
Phylloscopus nitidus
Nondescript leaf warbler with two whitish wing bars (often only one visible), dull to bright greenish upperparts, a yellow wash usually restricted to the face, and a pale orange lower bill. Breeds in forest in the Caucasus mountains. Winters primarily in southern India, where it largely overlaps with the similar-looking Greenish Warbler. Although separable from Greenish Warbler by its greener upperparts, yellow on face, and the second wingbar (when present), Green is best identified by its loud, fast, trisyllabic “chi-su-wi” call.
Helmet Vanga
Euryceros prevostii
Huge black vanga with a rufous back and an enormous blue bill. Rare and localized Madagascar endemic that is found in northeastern rainforest at low and middle elevations. Usually in the mid-story, perching motionless for long periods. Often joins flocks with other large vangas. Most easily located when nesting in a large mossy cup that is placed on a forking mid-story branch. Song is a long, delicate, high-pitched, slightly descending trill.
Snowy Sheathbill
Chionis albus
Unique, stocky, and rather pigeonlike white bird (actually an aberrant shorebird) of Antarctic Peninsula and islands. Migrates north in winter to Tierra del Fuego and southern Argentina, where a few immatures remain year-round at sea lion and penguin colonies. Typically unafraid; walks around boldly to scavenge and even eat feces. Plumage entirely white (somehow remarkably clean given its habits) with a naked pale pinkish face and a pale green and orange bill. Flies strongly with stiff wingbeats; does not alight on water, but will hitch rides on ships.
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