Spotted Laughingthrush

Ianthocincla ocellata

Handsome large laughingthrush with a dark cap and throat. Wings and tail are coffee-colored with blue-gray highlights along the edges. Black-and-white spotting on the upper body is densest on the back and breast. Combination of dark throat and cap is unique. Moves in pairs and small flocks through the undergrowth in open forest and scrubby areas at high altitude. Listen for its often piercingly loud, somewhat disjointed-sounding whistles coming from dense bamboo or rhododendron groves.

Taxonomy

Scientific name
Ianthocincla ocellata
Authority
(Vigors, 1831)
Order
Passeriformes
Family
Leiothrichidae
Genus
Ianthocincla

Range and habitat

Migration
Resident species

Conservation

Population trend
declining

Photos

Distribution

Bird Calls

Other Birds

Odedi

Odedi

Horornis haddeni

A small, round-bodied, cock-tailed skulking warbler. Appears three-toned: dark slaty gray below, chestnut brown above, with a paler rufous head and a slightly darker eye-stripe. Prefers dense undergrowth and tangles in forest or on forest edge above 600 meters of elevation, but locally lower. Song is a high-pitched whistle “o-de-di.” Also gives harsh scolding notes.

Little Curlew

Little Curlew

Numenius minutus

Smallest of the Asian curlews, just larger than a snipe. Found in open fields, grasslands, and pastures and also on coastal mudflats during migration. Large eyes give this bird a gentle appearance. Paler and more warmly colored than other curlews, Little also lacks the pale rump of Eurasian and Far Eastern and lacks the strong facial stripes and longer bill of Whimbrel. Flight call a high-pitched, ringing “pipipi”, higher than Whimbrel’s.

American Barn Owl

American Barn Owl

Tyto furcata

Medium-sized owl with a heart-shaped facial disc and deep dark eyes; the only Tyto owl present across most of its range; on Hispaniola compare to Ashy-faced Owl. Varies across a wide range, but always note white-and-black speckling on the upperparts, beautiful gray-and-tawny wings, and large round head. Color of the facial disc and underparts varies from pure white to rusty orange. Hunts in open areas by night, foraging with a slow and buoyant flight. Roosts in old buildings, tree hollows, caves, and nest boxes by day. Gives a bone-chilling, rising shriek, as well as shorter rasping calls and insect-like clicks.

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