Scarlet Finch
Carpodacus sipahi
The brilliantly red male is fittingly named and unmistakable. The female and juvenile are duller, but still recognizable with overall greenish-yellow tones, a yellow rump, and a thick pinkish bill. Rosefinches are similarly colored overall, but they have a smaller bill, a longer tail, and are more extensively streaked. Inhabits montane and hilly forests, where it usually moves around in small flocks, frequently perching on exposed branches and snags. Can be very sluggish and inactive. Gives rich slurred notes.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Carpodacus sipahi
- Authority
- (Hodgson, 1836)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Fringillidae
- Genus
- Carpodacus
Range and habitat
- Breeding range
- OR : sc Palearctic-n Oriental region in Himalayan montane forest: Uttarakhand through se Tibet, ne India, w, n Myanmar and nw Yunnan (sc China)
- Non-breeding range
- to lower elevations and s to n Thailand to n Vietnam
- Migration
- Vertical migration
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds

Waller's Starling
Onychognathus walleri
A medium-sized starling with a fairly short, squared-off tail. The base color is blue-black, and females show a gray head and breast. The wings have a large red patch that is conspicuous in flight. Found in the canopy of montane forest. Often forms flocks. Gives a variety of sweet, whistling calls. Similar to Kenrick’s Starling, but larger and chunkier, with a red eye. Also has a shorter tail than other red-winged starlings.

MacGillivray's Warbler
Geothlypis tolmiei
Chunky, skulking warbler that favors dense undergrowth. Yellow below and olive above with blue-gray head and chest. Blacker lores set off distinctive white arcs above and below eye. Adult males show darkest head; females and immatures have paler gray head and whitish throat. Found in thickets, clearcuts, open mixed forests, and riparian zones. Breeds primarily in mountainous regions of western North America; winters from Mexico to Costa Rica. Compare with Mourning Warbler, but little range overlap, and note longer tail and white eye-arcs on MacGillivray’s.

Monteiro's Storm-Petrel
Hydrobates monteiroi
Very similar to Band-rumped Storm-Petrel, and closely related to it. Both taxa differ mainly in timing of breeding and subsequent wing molt: Monteiro's Storm-Petrel breeds in summer and molt post-breeding, while Band-rumped breeds in winter and molts in winter. Morphologically they are very similar, however Monteiro's has on average a longer and more deeply-forked tail. Breeds in burrows and crevices on islands.
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