Flame-fronted Barbet

Distinctive and handsome orange-breasted finch. Note black head of males (solid in breeding season, patchy in non-breeding) and gray-and-brown head of females. Complex wing patterns and white rump patches create a wondrous show when a flock rises up in flight. Breeds in northern woodlands, especially in and around birches; winters in varied wooded habitats (especially with beech trees), semiopen country, and farmland with hedges; sometimes visits gardens and parks with feeders or fruiting trees. Song is surprising and almost ugly for such a well-marked finch, a strange ringing buzz: “eerRRRRNnnn.” Gives a rising “qweee”, a higher-pitchd “tsi, tsi”, and various twittering and nasal flock calls.

A distinctive species with fine zebra-striped plumage and a long and shovel-shaped bill giving a fang-like appearance. Typically feeds by swimming in tight circles. Like many waterbirds in inland Australia, it moves around a lot, and can be found in very large numbers when conditions are right.

Large green barbet with a broad black bandit’s mask, a pale gray face, and a black-and-yellow crown. Yellow-orange throat patch is small and sometimes missed when seen poorly. Like most other barbets, sluggish and difficult to see, usually encountered foraging quietly or sitting still in the canopy. Song is usually a long steady series of loud hiccupping two-syllabled hoots, but these sometimes sound more plaintive and whistled.