Yap White-eye
Zosterops oleagineus
Handsome and unique white-eye, endemic to the island of Yap, in Micronesia’s western Caroline Islands. Dark olive-brown in color, with a flashing bright white eye-ring and orange legs and feet. Inhabits a range of wooded habitats on Yap, from remaining native rainforest to mangroves and forest edge. Averages less common than the Plain White-eye with which it shares the island, and tends to forage in smaller groups, or in pairs. Gives a somewhat bulbul-like series of whistled notes: “wi’di-deer-di-deer.”
Taxonomy
It is often placed in the genus Rukia with the teardrop and long-billed white-eyes and is most similar in plumage to the former.
- Scientific name
- Zosterops oleagineus
- Authority
- Hartlaub & Finsch, 1872
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Zosteropidae
- Genus
- Zosterops
Range and habitat
It is endemic to the Micronesian island of Yap. Its natural habitats are tropical moist lowland and mangrove forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
Indochinese Blue Flycatcher
Cyornis sumatrensis
Attractive long-tailed flycatcher with an orange throat and breast. Male is ocean blue above, with a darker face and brighter orange on the underparts. Female is brownish overall, but with some blue tinting on the head and back; some females may appear blue-gray; also note her faint eyering. Both sexes have white lower bellies and blue tails. Can be easily confused with other Cyornis flycatchers, but note present species’ extensively orange throat, roughly even division of orange and white on the underparts, and bluish gray-brown coloration of the female. Primarily a lowland species, but also ranges into foothills; favors open dry forests, forest edges, and scrub; very locally in coastal forests and mangroves. Song is a variable series of clear, pleasant, rising and falling whistles. Call is a dry, smacking “chit, chit”, often given in short bursts.
Cassin's Honeybird
Prodotiscus insignis
A small, upright honeyguide of forest and forest edge, where it forages for insects and flycatches into the open. Plumage is a relatively uniform olive-green to green, with a paler throat, small pale eye arcs, and bright white outer tail feathers that are obvious when flying out for insects. Similar to Green-backed Honeyguide and Wahlberg’s Honeyguide, but differs in range, in its overall greenish coloration including the belly, and in its clean white outer tail feathers. Voice is little known, but apparently gives a buzzy trill in flight that rises and falls in pitch.
Greater Striped Swallow
Cecropis cucullata
Large, beautiful swallow with a long, forked tail. Note the rufous cap, cinnamon rump, and pale buffy underparts with fine streaking. Usually found in grassland and wetland, though can be seen in other habitats, especially when migrating. Often in flocks, sometimes mixed with other swallow species. Similar to Lesser Striped Swallow, but larger, with buffy underparts with finer streaks, and with less orange on the face.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.