Common Sunbird-Asity
Neodrepanis coruscans
Tiny, round, short-tailed bird with a long curved bill. Breeding males are blue on the back and yellow below, with bright bare skin around the eye. Non-breeding males and females are dull olive-green. Madagascar endemic that is found in the canopy of eastern and northern rainforest. Hyperactive nectar feeder that constantly flits from flower to flower. Call is an accelerating series of quiet and very high-pitched notes. Similar to the scarce Yellow-bellied Sunbird-Asity, but has duller olive underparts and a larger, more curved bill. Smaller than Souimanga Sunbird, with a thinner bill and shorter tail.
Identification
The genus Neodrepanis is characterised by a tiny body with a short tail, a fine, strongly decurved bill and, during the breeding season, strong sexual dichromatism. Males in breeding plumage are brilliant blue and black above and variably bright yellow below, with extraordinary blue and green facial caruncles. Females, males in non-breeding plumage and immatures are dull blue-green above, lack caruncles and are variably yellowish below; some female-plumaged birds (at least for Common Sunbird Asity) have a half-sized caruncle and may be immature males. In winter, males are often seen with traces of breeding plumage coloration.<p>Male common sunbird-asities are duller than yellow-bellied in almost all respects. The former have brilliant royal blue-fringed back crown, nape, mantle and scapular feathers, and narrow but fairly conspicuous yellow fringes to the secondaries and greater and median wing coverts. Their underparts are dull, deep yellow, with strong olive-brown streaking in the centre of the breast; the flanks, belly and undertail coverts are unstreaked and somewhat brighter. The caruncle is almost square and turquoise-blue, rather greener around the eye. It extends only a short distance in front of the eye, and is not connected to the area of blue (basally) and green (distally) bare skin that overlies the basal quarter of the bill.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Neodrepanis coruscans
- Authority
- Sharpe, 1875
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Philepittidae
- Genus
- Neodrepanis
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Finn's Weaver
Ploceus megarhynchus
Range-restricted weaver with a powerful dark bill. Male is predominantly yellow with a dark cheek patch. Female is streaky brown above and paler below; lacks the strong streaking and facial patterns of Streaked and Black-breasted Weavers. Female Finn’s is similar to female Baya Weaver, but note the darker coloration, lack of a pale brow stripe, and heavier, sharper-looking bill in female Finn’s. Inhabits open areas with scattered trees; favors wet areas. Colonial nester; males build ball-shaped nests, often in cotton trees.
Black-throated Apalis
Apalis jacksoni
Attractive and boldly marked apalis. Shows a throat pattern of dark and white stripes. Males have a black mask and are more colorful overall. Their crown color varies geographically from gray to black. Females have mostly olive-green upperparts. Found primarily in montane forest, though locally in lower humid forest in West Africa. Pairs feed actively in the canopy and sometimes join mixed-species flocks. The song is a distinctive, ringing up-and-down series of “juu-jee” couplings. Separated from all similar species in its range by the yellow underparts.
Whiskered Screech-Owl
Megascops trichopsis
Small owl restricted to oak woodlands in canyons and foothills in Mexico, barely reaching into southeast Arizona and southwest New Mexico. Finely patterned in gray, black, and white. Very similar to Western Screech-Owl; best distinguished by voice. Two song types: one a relatively even series of five to eight "toot" notes; the other sounds like morse code: "toot-toot, toot, toot, toot-toot, toot." Also note paler bill than Western Screech-Owl.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.