Yellow-throated Chlorospingus

A rare Hawaiian honeycreeper of high elevation dry forests on the western slope of Mauna Kea volcano on Hawaii Island. Occurs only above 6,500 feet. Males and females are similarly patterned but males are more brightly colored. Quiet and generally shy, but males may sing from an exposed perch. Sometimes found in pairs or small groups. Feeds primarily on green seed pods of the mamane tree. Call is a soft “pah-lee-lah.”

Bold, blue-and-gray jay of oak scrub in central Florida. Juveniles have browner head and back than adults. Lacks crest and patterning on the wings and tail seen on Blue Jay. Very social, staying in close family groups to raise young. Readily hops on the ground while searching for food. Unique scrubby habitat must burn periodically in order to remain appropriate for Florida Scrub-Jays. Classified as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Thickset, short-winged, pot-bellied gull. Adult has dark gray back and wings, intense pink legs, and an especially large white “crescent” (white tertial edges) near the wingtips when perched. Breeding adult white-headed; nonbreeding birds have variably heavy brown streaking on the head and upper breast. Takes four years for immatures to progress from mostly brown to fully white and gray adult plumage; intermediate plumages are often mottled and messy. Often looks rather frosty by the first winter; starts to develop a gray back and whitish eye in its second year. Primarily an Asian species, found in coastal regions from Japan and South Korea to Russia. Regularly occurs in western Alaska, but very rare elsewhere in North America.