Lina's Sunbird
Aethopyga linaraborae
A small, localized bird of montane forest in eastern Mindanao. Has a long, curved bill, an olive back, an orange mark in the middle of the chest and a bluish tail with white tips. Male has an iridescent blue crown, cheek, and wing, a green shoulder and rump, yellow underparts, and a small orange patch in front of the shoulder. Female has faint streaking on the underparts, a gray head, and golden-olive wings. Similar to Metallic-winged Sunbird, but male has a blue wing and female a gray head. Voice includes a high-pitched jumbled song, a series of sharp “chik!” notes, and an upslurred high-pitched whistle.
Identification
EBird describes the bird as "A small, localized bird of montane forest in eastern Mindanao. Has a long, curved bill, an olive back, an orange mark in the middle of the chest and a bluish tail with white tips. Male has an iridescent blue crown, cheek, and wing, a green shoulder and rump, yellow underparts, and a small orange patch in front of the shoulder. Female has faint streaking on the underparts, a gray head, and golden-olive wings. Similar to Metallic-winged sunbird, but male has a blue wing and female a gray head. Voice includes a high-pitched jumbled song, a series of sharp 'chik!' notes, and an upslurred high-pitched whistle."<p>Breeding has been observed in May but this is not yet fully understood.
Taxonomy
Genus: Aethopyga; Family: Nectariniidae; Order: Passeriformes.
- Scientific name
- Aethopyga linaraborae
- Authority
- Kennedy, RS, Gonzales & Miranda, 1997
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Nectariniidae
- Genus
- Aethopyga
Range and habitat
It occupies montane mossy forest from 970 to 2,000 m and above. <p>IUCN has assessed this bird as near threatened. Despite its limited range, it is said to be locally common in its range. As it occurs in rugged and inaccessible mountains, this has allowed a large portion of its habitat to remain intact. However, there it is still affected by habitat loss through deforestation, mining, land conversion and slash-and-burn - just not to the same extent as lowland forest. Mt. Tagubud in New Bataan, where it is mainly seen by birdwatchers, has faced considerable deforestation.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: stable.
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds

Mountain Trogon
Trogon mexicanus
Fairly large trogon of pine and pine-oak forests in highlands; usually at upper levels in trees and often rather shy. Male is striking, with big, bold white squares on underside of tail. Female has broken white eyering on brown head and coarse black-and-white pattern under the tail. Elegant Trogon overlaps in range and can be told from Mountain by the coppery color on the top of the tail (male) or by the white stripe behind the eye (female). Also note the finely patterned tail on both male and female Elegant Trogons. The similar but smaller Collared Trogon is found mainly at lower elevation and has much finer barring on the underside of the tail.

Black Wood-Pigeon
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Maquis Canastero
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Slender and long-tailed canastero of the high Andes from Cochabamba, Bolivia south to NE Argentina. Prefers scrubby hillsides, ravines, and open Polylepis woodland above treeline. Distinguished from the more common Puna and Creamy-breasted Canasteros by lack of streaked back (from Puna) and brown cap and long, slender tail (from Creamy-breasted). Often in pairs or small family groups, though can be quite elusive. Song a rising series of slightly nasal whistles, each of which descends and the ascends rapidly in pitch: “tuwhee-tuwee-tuwhee-tuweeh-tee!”
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