Manu Antbird

Cercomacra manu

Skinny antbird of bamboo stands. Males are dark gray or black with small white wing bars and white spots on the underside of the tail; females are gray below, brown above, looking dark overall, with faint buffy wing bars and spots on the underside of the tail. Almost always found in bamboo thickets. Listen for its distinctive song, a rubbery, bouncing “pook-cha-pook-cha-pook-cha.” Distinguished from the similar Gray Antbird by male’s nearly black plumage (not gray) and female’s grayer underparts (not uniformly brown). Males also are similar to Dot-winged Antwren, but are larger, with less white on the wing bars and slightly lighter overall plumage (not glossy black like the antwren).

Taxonomy

Scientific name
Cercomacra manu
Authority
Fitzpatrick & Willard, 1990
Order
Passeriformes
Family
Thamnophilidae
Genus
Cercomacra

Range and habitat

Migration
Resident species

Conservation

Population trend
declining

Photos

Distribution

Bird Calls

Other Birds

Flores Heleia

Flores Heleia

Heleia crassirostris

A gray-and-white songbird  with a diagnostic head pattern. Dark olive above and clean white below, with dark cheeks that contrast with the conspicuous pale eye and a white forehead bleeding into dark speckles on the crown. Juveniles show a plain buff forehead and crown. Found singly or in pairs in understory of forest and forest edge in lowlands and foothills, frequenting mixed-species flocks. Confined to the Lesser Sundas. Calls include soft “chup” and weak “pew” notes. Striking, melodious warbling song is punctuated with repeated clear trills and staccato “wit-wit-wit” phrases.

West African Seedeater

West African Seedeater

Crithagra canicapilla

A medium-sized brown seedeater. Note the boldly marked face with a dark crown, a white eyebrow, and a broad dark-brown patch through the eye. The underparts lack streaking, but may show some brown blotching. Found in woodland, scrub, and cultivated areas. Often in pairs or small flocks. Similar to Reichard's Seedeater, but there is little overlap in range, and West African is easily separated by the unstreaked underparts. Somewhat similar to White-rumped Seedeater, but lacks a white rump, and has a strong facial pattern and unstreaked underparts. Gives a pretty, musical up-and-down song of whistles and trills which also sometimes includes imitations of other birds.

Rufous Songlark

Rufous Songlark

Cincloramphus mathewsi

Plain brownish songbird with faint pale eyebrow and rust-colored rump. Similar female White-winged Triller has white-edged wing panel. Brown Songlark larger, with longer legs and bill and more strongly patterned upperparts. Found across much of Australia, less so in the southeast, in treeless open habitats. Spectacular song includes long sequences of trills and loud electrical phrases, very unlike Brown Songlark.

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