Laura's Woodland-Warbler
Phylloscopus laurae
A medium-sized, greenish leaf-warbler with a bright yellow throat, eyebrow, and vent, and pale belly. Eastern birds are brighter than those farther west. Immature is duller than adult, tinged brown on the upperparts. Pairs are inconspicuous residents in swamp and isolated evergreen forest patches in Miombo woodland, and in montane forest. Gleans insects from mid-level to forest canopy, often using edges and clearings. Similar migrant Willow Warbler is duller than Laura’s and lacks clear yellow throat and white belly demarcation; Laura’s does not overlap with other African resident wood-warblers. The distinctive melodious song is a series of 5-8 regularly repeated phrases “pri-chi-rri, pri-chir-ri, pri-chi-ri” or “twi-li, twi-li-twi-li”.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Phylloscopus laurae
- Authority
- (Boulton, 1931)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Phylloscopidae
- Genus
- Phylloscopus
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Little Weaver
Ploceus luteolus
Minuscule yellow weaver. Breeding males have a clean black face mask and pure lemon underparts. Females and non-breeding males have a streaked back and pale face and underparts. Found in savanna and sometimes cultivated areas. Usually in pairs or small groups; not as social as some weavers. Vocalizations are typical of weavers: “chet” notes and a sizzling, “radio static” song. Most similar to Slender-billed Weaver, but found in different habitat, and has a much stubbier bill. Separated from all other weavers by its small size.
Banda Sea Monarch
Symposiachrus mundus
A gray-and-white flycatcher-like songbird confined to the eastern Lesser Sundas. Head slate-gray with well-defined black mask and throat. Underparts bright white and upperparts slate-gray, with dark tail displaying obvious white outer feathers. Juveniles are grayish-brown above and cinnamon below, with white on face, throat, and neck. Singles and pairs frequent mixed-species flocks within understory of forest, forest edge, and mangroves. Lacks orange on breast, unlike Spectacled Monarch. Song is a high-pitched, descending whistled “seeeer.” Also gives a scratchy “k’schrrrr,” “schrrrr,” and rasping “weeee.”
Jamaican Woodpecker
Melanerpes radiolatus
A striking medium-sized species of wooded habitats. The white face framed by the red of its nape and crown and its finely barred black-and-white back is distinctive; resembles no other species in its range. Sometimes first detected by its determined excavation of rotting wood. Vocalizations include an emphatic, slightly rough “urp,” and a burry “urr-urr-urr-urr” given as a rapid rolling burst.
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