Finsch's Wheatear

Small woodpecker of open forest and forest edge. Note size, pale eyes, and broad-striped head pattern. Darkness of the crown varies; palest in northern and peninsular India and darkest in Sri Lanka. Where it overlaps with Gray-capped Woodpecker, note the more “blocky” head pattern, pale eyes, and white-spotted tail of Brown-capped. Gives a short chittering trill that rises and falls quickly.

A medium-sized black-and-white hornbill. Males have a mostly red bill with a yellow or white tip; females have an all-black bill. Both sexes show a mostly black wing. Generally common in dry savanna, usually in pairs or small groups. Similar to Jackson’s and Northern Red-billed Hornbills, but separated from the former by the unspotted black wing and from the latter by the yellow-tipped (male) or all-black (female) bill. The call is a series of raspy clucks, often given as a duet by a pair. 

An impressive long-tailed bird of moist mid-elevation woodlands including secondary growth, where it feeds in the understory by peeking and probing into vegetation in pursuit of insects and lizards. Generally solitary and secretive, but not shy. Note this species’ long, straight, narrow bill and buff underparts. The Chestnut-bellied Cuckoo is similar in overall shape, but it is somewhat larger with a chestnut belly and a grayish chest; also note its bill is much shorter and somewhat curved compared to Jamaican Lizard-Cuckoo. The passingly similar Mangrove Cuckoo is somewhat smaller, shorter billed, lacks an eyering, and has a black mask. Jamaican Lizard-Cuckoos are often first detected by voice: a rapid-fire, ratcheting “k-k-k-kuh-kuh-kuh-kuh-kuh…” that grows slower and louder as it progresses; usually given at a uniform pitch.