Wetar Figbird

A typical pitta: plump, short-tailed, long-legged, and primarily terrestrial (sometimes perches up to call). Bright green above with electric blue shoulder patch and rump and black head with conspicuous pale brow. Underside golden-buff with black and bright red on the belly. Plumage varies geographically, with forms varying in eyebrow, throat color (white or black), and extent of red and black on belly. Juvenile duller, with little blue in wing, an orange-tipped bill, and a pinkish belly. Inhabits woodland, forest, scrub, and plantations in lowlands and hills; some populations migratory. Sometimes arboreal when calling. Voice varies throughout range; generally a variation on “wit-wit-deer” or “werwer-dew!”

Fairly small tanager-like sparrow with an extremely tiny range in the foothills of eastern Panama, from around 800–1,200 m. Distinctive in range: olive-brownish overall with brighter yellow-ochre underparts, darker blackish face, and staring pale eye. Like other chlorospingus, typically found in small groups, often with a mixed-species flock. Usually sticks to the understory or middle levels of humid forest.

The antithesis of a typical tapaculo, Ocellated is large and spectacular. The body is mostly black and covered with bright white spots. The face and rump are bright rufous. Look for the daggerlike hindclaws, which are used to scrape the ground in search of insects. Sexes alike. This chunky bird is quite shy, staying on or near the ground among thick understory and bamboo thickets in montane forest from 2,300–3,500 m. Not usually seen without considerable effort. Listen for its loud descending whistle, “wheeeu.”