Biak Scops-Owl

A slender, medium-sized bird of lowland and foothill forest interior. Fairly long tail and black face with gray bill and blue eye wattle. Male has white belly and collar, black tail, back and wings with a white wing patch. Female has orange chest, throat and collar with rufous tail, back and wings. Limited overlap with the similar Ochre-collared Monarch, but Frilled male has a white rather than orange collar, and the female a rufous rather than brown back. Voice, a series of buzzing notes, sometimes interspersed with a high-pitched “whip”, and an up-and-down whistled song.

Small, skulking wren of foothills and lowlands along the Caribbean slope from Nicaragua south to western Panama. Found in forest edges, second-growth thickets, and brushy fields with cane grass. Heard more often than seen: song relatively short with bright phrases usually repeated a few times in quick succession. Note the bold white eyebrow, whitish breast, rich buffy flanks, and bright rusty tail barred black. Formerly known as Plain Wren.

This flightless South American relative of the ostriches stands about 5 feet tall with a body about the size of a sheep; no similar species in its range. Rheas roam widely on open Patagonian steppe and also occur locally in open habitats of the Andes, mainly at very high elevations. Can be confiding where used to people, but in other areas wary, running strongly and quickly. Rheas occur singly or in groups, and males take care of the young. Adults have bold pale spots on the body, first-year birds are plainer overall.