Tit-hylia

A small, yellow-eyed masked-weaver with a plain green back. The breeding male has a black face mask extending to a point on the upper breast, without a chestnut wash around the mask. Female and juvenile are duller, with a buff wash on the breast and a lightly streaked back. A fairly common resident throughout open savanna and semi-arid areas, often nesting colonially near ant and wasp nests. Many similar-looking weavers do not overlap in range with Heuglin’s: the larger Village and Vitelline Masked-Weavers have red eyes, and Lesser Masked-Weaver has a black (not yellow) forehead. 

Endemic to the islands of Timor, Wetar, and Alor, this little-known nightjar was only described in 2024. Inhabits forests and forest edges, where nocturnal habits and cryptic plumage make it difficult to see. Listen instead for its song, a series of hollow knocking notes: “tok-tok-tok-tok-tok-tok”, quite different from the buzzy “dzwee” of Savanna Nightjar, which overlaps in range but favors more open habitats. If seen well, note white throat and tips of undertail, as well as overall less diffuse patterning than Savanna Nightjar.

Small, slim shrike with a brown wing and tail. Note the white slash across the shoulders. Males are gray below and females buffy. Found in broadleaf woodland of miombo, mopane, and Zambezi teak. Uncommon and very localized species. Perches high in trees, but rarely on the conspicuous open perches used by most shrikes. Often in pairs. The vocalizations include an annoyed-sounding “sveeat” and low rasps. Most similar to female Red-backed Shrike, but separated by the white mark across the shoulders and lack of barring on the underparts.