Many-colored Chaco Finch
Saltatricula multicolor
Slender, ornate bird found in low, scraggly forest and adjacent overgrown clearings. Handsomely patterned in shades of gray, orange and white, with a black “mutton chop” beard bordered by a white eyebrow. Female and immature are slightly browner than adult male. Song, often given from an exposed perch, is a quick up-and-down series of sweet whistles repeated every few seconds. When not singing, it tends to skulk inside dense vegetation where it is hard to see.
Identification
Saltatricula multicolor is a large and attractive finch common in the Gran Chaco where it is a frequent member of the mixed ground-feeding, seed-eating flocks that gather in winter.<p>This species yellow bill and distinctive head pattern is often mistaken for the Golden-billed Saltator which occurs alongside him, but the Saltator is much bigger, duller and lacks any white on the tail.<p>These birds are often seen in pairs or parties of five or six on the ground among low bushes, in burns, or at the borders of fields or thickets. Their light coloration makes them conspicuous. When startled they will fly into the bushes for safety. Their call is an insistent chipping note like that of a junco.<p>Males have dark mouse gray maxilla; cutting edge of maxilla and mandible mustard yellow; iris natal brown; tarsus and toes neutral gray. Juveniles has dull black bills with cutting edges faintly marked with dull yellow.<p>Length: 18 cm; Weight :25 g.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Saltatricula multicolor
- Authority
- (Burmeister, 1860)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Thraupidae
- Genus
- Saltatricula
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Setophaga caerulescens
Striking warbler with vastly different male and female plumages. Males are unique deep blue above with black face and sides and white belly. Females are plain brownish-olive with dingy buffy underparts and subtle face pattern. Always look for small white patch on the wing, lacking only on the dullest immature females. Breeds in the understory of mixed forests, favoring hills with dense vegetation. Found in nearly any wooded or shrubby habitat during migration. Winters primarily in the Caribbean. Listen for lazy buzzy song, usually a series of notes with a final long buzz.
Small Sparrowhawk
Tachyspiza nanus
A small, compact hawk with yellow eyes, a lime-green bill base, and yellow legs. Adult is slate-gray with a vinous breast and whitish belly and thighs. Immatures are unbarred rufous above with boldly streaked pale underparts. Doesn’t soar. Mostly found in hill and montane forest, occasionally lowlands. Confined to Sulawesi. Slightly smaller, shorter-tailed, smaller-billed, and shorter-toed than Vinous-breasted Sparrowhawk, but best separated by voice. Pale eyes distinguish it from Spot-tailed Goshawk and Chinese and Japanese Sparrowhawks. Unbarred thighs and extensive white underwings in flight separate it from adult Japanese Sparrowhawk. Absence of tail spots rules out Spot-tailed Goshawk. Gives a “kew-kew-ke-ke-ke-ke” call, higher-pitched than Vinous-breasted Sparowhawk’s.
Roraiman Nightjar
Tepuiornis whitelyi
A medium-sized, dark nightjar of tepui highlands, difficult to identify by plumage alone. Cryptically patterned with dark brown and gray accented with buffy and whitish bars and spots. Male has a white band in the wing, which the female lacks. Uncommon, found in humid forest and edges, as well as humid scrub close to forested areas. Distinctive voice is a hoarse whistle “whoEEuuu”, given repeatedly. Larger than the similar Band-winged Nightjar, and smaller than Blackish Nightjar, but best identified by voice and habitat.
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