Sri Lanka Gray Hornbill

Small diving duck with thin serrated bill. Breeding males have showy black-and-white crest, a couple zebra stripes on the white breast, and cinnamon-colored sides. Females are brown with a puffy crest and partly yellow bill. Looks slender and long-necked in flight, with very fast wingbeats. Widespread across much of North America, but usually only seen in pairs or small flocks. Nests in cavities near small ponds or marshes; especially fond of wooded swamps. In winter, usually found on calm bodies of water; almost never on the ocean. Sometimes mixes loosely with other duck species.

A fairly nondescript thick-billed, sparrow-sized songbird. Upperparts are uniform rich brown and underparts whitish, but particularly note the yellow wash to the lower belly and the base of the undertail. Juvenile has a gray head and rufous-tinged plumage. Restricted to forested foothills and mountains on Sulawesi, where pairs often join mixed-species feeding flocks in the understory and subcanopy. Yellow vent makes this species easily identifiable in its limited range. Song starts with three or four introductory whistles, often on the same pitch, and ends with a powerful upslurred whip note: “wi-wi-wi-WHIYIP.”

Striking white ibis with a naked black head and neck and black legs and feet. White wings framed by black wingtips and trailing edges. Can be encountered in almost any open habitat from wild wetlands to farmland and rubbish dumps. Originally restricted to sub-Saharan Africa, but now established in Taiwan and Europe, with feral colonies in France, Italy, and Spain.