Gabela Akalat

Scarce blackbird found only at higher elevations in the northern half of Colombia’s eastern Andes. It is quite slender and nearly all black, but has a maroon patch under the shoulder which is mostly hidden from view when the bird is perched. The dark bill and eye help to separate it from other similar species if the wing patch is not visible. Usually seen in the forest canopy and may congregate in large flocks. Song is a chaotic series of sharp, shrill notes mixed with clacking calls.

A mostly red-and-green lorikeet, green above and red below with a large red face patch, bluish purple thighs, and a greenish chest band. Endemic to native primary forest on Henderson Island, where it is unlike any other local species. Most common call is a fast trisyllabic “tsililit.”

Medium-sized tern with thick black bill. Very pale overall with black cap in breeding plumage. Legs black. Nonbreeding plumage shows small dark cheek patch. Found both coastally and inland in a variety of wetland habitats, including beaches, mudflats, freshwater marshes, and even wet fields. Occasionally joins flocks with other terns, but more often seen singly or in pairs. Graceful in flight; swoops over ponds and marshes where it grabs invertebrates from the surface. Formerly considered part of Gull-billed Tern, and limits of the range of that species and Australian in New Guinea and southern Indonesia poorly understood.