White-bellied Sunbird
Cinnyris talatala
A small, pale-bellied sunbird. The male has iridescent blue-green upperparts and head, with a bold white belly and broad purplish breast band. The female is very clean, gray-brown above and pale gray underneath, without any markings. Singles, pairs, and small groups occupy savanna, broadleaf woodland, and parkland, foraging for insects and nectar. The song is a canary-like warble and the call is a strained, 2-5 note “cheet-cheet….” Oustalet’s Sunbird differs by having a shorter bill and darker throat, a broader maroon breast band, a blue (not green) upper tail, and orange (not yellow) pectoral tufts.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Cinnyris talatala
- Authority
- Smith, A, 1836
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Nectariniidae
- Genus
- Cinnyris
Range and habitat
Occurs from Angola to southern Tanzania south to southern Africa, where it is common to locally abundant across northern Namibia, northern and south-eastern Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Eswatini and north-eastern South Africa. It generally prefers semi-arid savanna woodland, such as Acacia, bushwillow (Combretum) and riparian thickets, Zambezi teak (Baikiaea plurijuga) and mixed miombo (Brachystegia) woodland.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Golden Babbler
Cyanoderma chrysaeum
Splendid small babbler; apart from a dark-streaked crown and small black mask, this bird is bright golden yellow all over. Inhabits hilly and montane forests with dense undergrowth, as well as bushy second growth. Frequently joins mixed-species flocks. Song is a distinctive short series of whistles on the same pitch with a slight pause after the first note; quality usually soft and slightly hooting, but occasionally harder and more metallic. Calls include wet, ticking trills and rapidly-repeated fluty whistles.
Dusky-throated Antshrike
Thamnomanes ardesiacus
Small antshrike of lowland rainforest understory. Males are slaty gray overall. Most individuals, but not all, have a ragged black throat patch. Females are dull brown with buffier belly. Shorter-tailed than similar Bluish-Slate and Cinereous Antshrikes, with less upright posture (songs also differ significantly). Smaller-billed than similar Plain-winged Antshrike. One of the most prominent leaders of understory multi-species flocks.
Gray-browed Wren
Pheugopedius schulenbergi
Bamboo-loving wren found locally on the eastern slope of the Andes in northern Peru. Brown and gray overall with black and white face and mustache stripes. Gray underparts are unspotted; crown brown with black edges. Pairs or small groups skulk in dense bamboo, where they are most often found by their remarkable voice, a truly operatic performance of low-pitched hooting whistles given by two or three birds at once.
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