Chestnut-rumped Babbler

A small, dull babbler with a short tail. Brown with a gray head and pale underparts. Dark gray crown, faintly streaked breast, and brighter buffy wash on the flanks eliminate similar-looking Abbott’s Babbler. Similarly drab White-chested and Sooty-capped babblers have longer tails and bills. Found in lowland and foothill forests. Typical song is a sharp chip followed by a whistled note or two: “chi puh-weee!”; Javan birds add a longer, ascending whistle to the end.

Desert-loving sparrow found only in northwestern Peru and southwestern Ecuador. It has gray underparts, a brown back, a striped head, and a large bill; there is no similar species in its range. Rather solitary; usually feeds on the ground, where it can be hard to see in the low scrub it prefers. Occasionally comes up to perch on an exposed branch to sing or look around.

Often seen clambering up or headfirst down trees, this small active bird is usually found in the middle levels of the forest, though it will descend down toward the ground on occasion. Gray above and warmly-colored below throughout its range; eastern birds are paler below than western birds, the males of which have dark rusty bellies. Western birds also sport a bright contrasting white moustache. Lack of bright white patch on the tail distinguishes this species from White-tailed Nuthatch. A species of hill and submontane forests, where it favors lightly wooded areas of both broadleaf deciduous and pine forests. Often detected by its quick, echoing trill.