Indigo Flowerpiercer

Cryptically patterned nightbird; widespread and common in Central and South America, limited U.S. range. Found in shrubby woodlands. Patterned with gray, gold, and brown; note especially cinnamon cheeks and golden edges on back and wing feathers. In flight, note white outer tail feathers and white bar across the wings. Roosts on the ground during the day; actively hunts for insects at night. Song is a distinctive, rich, slightly buzzy "pur-WEEooo." Relatively long tail compared with other similar nightbirds.

Small, dark-backed starling with lightly streaked, gray underparts and noticeable white face. Found in pairs and small groups within the canopy of forest in the lowlands and foothills. Only starling in Sri Lanka with uniformly dark upperparts, extending onto nape and rear crown. Most often heard call is a harsh “chyup”. Song is an untidy series of warbles and scratchy notes.

Buoyant “river tern” with dramatically different breeding and non-breeding plumages. Breeding adult is wildly conspicuous in flight, with contrasting black-and-white plumage; at rest note white shoulders contrasting with black body. Non-breeding and younger birds are white with gray patches and black “earmuffs.” In areas of overlap, juvenile told from Black Tern by dark back contrasting with lighter upperwings and white rump and by black marking above the shoulder. Non-breeding Whiskered Tern can be similar, but has a faded, patchy dark crown instead of earmuffs. Commonly found in flocks around rivers, lakes, and wetlands, where it picks food from surface instead of splash-diving; generally not as closely associated with saltwater as many typical terns.