Malabar Starling

Large, stocky bunting with a long tail. Rusty-red head and yellow body easily identify the breeding male; non-breeding male has restricted red on the head and a streaky brown back. Female and juvenile are pale brown with streaked back and wings; these plumages can be nearly impossible to separate from Black-headed Bunting. Look out for Red-headed’s less extensive crown streaking, less “compact” appearance (longer-billed and longer-tailed), less yellow underparts, and colder back coloration. Breeds in open dry spaces with scattered bushes; winters in agricultural fields. Song starts out with a few dry, rasping notes, then turns into a more fluid-sounding jumble.

A small, mostly grass-green bee-eater with a canary-yellow throat separated from buff underparts by a black line across the throat. Singles and pairs occupy grassy savanna and wetland edges. They often perch lower than 1.5 m above the ground, and dart around hunting flying insects, then returning to the same small twig. Calls include a sibilant “s-lip” and other high-pitched notes. The Blue-breasted Bee-eater is slightly larger and has a white patch on the cheek. The much larger Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater has burnt orange underparts, and it prefers highland forest above 1800 m.

Scarce parrot of Andean cloud forest. There are two isolated populations, one in central Peru and the other in central Bolivia. Plumage is green with mostly black wings, blue wingtips, a faint blue collar, and a grayish or buffy ear patch (which is very indistinct on some birds). Usually seen flying rapidly over the forest canopy, then quickly disappearing into the trees, where it becomes very hard to spot.