Orange-billed Sparrow

Endemic to Cuba. A small flocking species of brushy and wooded habitats. Note the stout bill with curved culmen, and the white slash along the front of the folded wing. Male is glossy black, female is very dark blackish-gray. No similar species occurs in its range. Song is a complex buzzy trill that drops in pitch and is followed by various chips and thin “tsi” notes. Calls include a hard chip, often rapidly doubled, and a high buzzy “tsit.”

Dark, burly medium-sized ibis. Restricted pale patches on the nape and shoulder distinguish this from all-dark ibises. Habitat preferences differ somewhat in two parts of disjunct range; Bornean birds favor mature riparian forests, while Indochinese birds are generally found in wet or flooded openings in dry forest and wooded plains. Forages singly, in pairs, or in small groups. Often disperses with the arrival of seasonal rains. Gives loud, resonating honks and croaking roars. Declining across range; status of Bornean population especially tenuous.

Seldom-seen pale gray falcon of inland Australia found in arid grassland and woodland habitats, where it sometimes perches high on communication towers. Pale gray upperparts and white underparts, with faint dark streaks below. Legs fully feathered (unlike the long, bare legs of Brown Falcon). In flight, outer upperwing (“hand”) is noticeably darker than the inner wing and back. Wings not as pointed as hobby or Peregrine Falcon. Pale inland Brown Falcons are often misidentified as this species: note that Gray Falcon is unlikely to be seen perched in low bushes or feeding from the ground.