Martens's Warbler
Phylloscopus omeiensis
A bright and attractive small warbler with many virtually identical relatives. Breeds in foothill and montane forests, where it favors areas with a dense understory. Descends into lower elevations in the winter, when it often moves around with mixed flocks. Bright green above and yellow below, with a gray-and-black-striped crown and a bright yellow eyering; note intermediately strong crown patterning and distinct yellow eyering, often weak but not broken above the eye. Song is a series of lively whistles and chirps uttered in discrete bursts.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Phylloscopus omeiensis
- Authority
- (Martens, J, Eck, Päckert & Sun, 1999)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Phylloscopidae
- Genus
- Phylloscopus
Range and habitat
- Breeding range
- PAL : c China
- Non-breeding range
- n se Asia
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Streaky-headed Seedeater
Crithagra gularis
Dull brownish seedeater with a pale eyebrow and underparts. Found in woodland, scrub, and fynbos. Often in small flocks. Call is a whistled “tsee-weet”. Song is a cheerful and energetic mix of repeated notes. Similar to White-throated Canary but shows a long white eyebrow and a brown rather than yellowish rump. Also similar to Black-eared Seedeater but has a browner back, more subdued black ear markings, and less streaking on the breast.
Selayar Whistler
Pachycephala teysmanni
Medium-sized songbird, endemic to Selayar, off southwestern Sulawesi. Quite drab overall, with a gray head, white throat, yellow belly, and olive back. Like other Pacycephala whistlers, a forest species, often seen gleaning insects from the foliage. Vocalizations are poorly known, but includes a short whistled song that starts with a quiet descending note, followed by two loud rising whistles and a decisive-sounding descending note: tso-WEE-WEE-dzo! Formerly treated as a subspecies of Tenggara Whistler.
African River Martin
Pseudochelidon eurystomina
Enigmatic and distinctive, this compact all-dark martin has striking red eyes and a bright orange-red bill. Juvenile is duller. In lethargic flight it appears bulky-headed, short-tailed, and triangular-winged. Small to large groups forage high over forested rivers, swamps, and coastal scrub. Birds migrate between two breeding areas, one in coastal central Africa from Gabon to northern Angola (August to December), and another farther inland, centered on the Congo River in west-central Democratic Republic of Congo (January to May), but their habits remain poorly understood. Calls include a scratchy chattering “skeer-skeer”; large flocks can become cacophonous.
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