Merida Flowerpiercer

A uniformly blackish starling with a medium-length square tail and a dark eye. Juveniles browner, with streaking below and a rufous-tinged tail. Occurs in the canopy of forest edges, wooded areas, and mangroves, where it is usually encountered in pairs or small groups. Confined to the Tanimbar Islands. Noticeably shorter-tailed than Metallic Starling, with less colorful plumage gloss and a dark eye. Calls include a harsh, metallic “brrrrrit” and a disyllabic “tzewit.”

Slender pale sandpiper with a fine, needle-like bill. Note the overall slim and elegant shape, with very long and slender greenish legs: suggests a much smaller Greenshank that’s been to ballet school. In flight appears dark above with broad white stripe up middle of back; long legs project well past tail tip. Usually found singly or mixed in with other waders in varied fresh to brackish wetland habitats, usually with open water. Feeds by wading in water, picking with its bill. Repetitive mellow calls somewhat similar to Greenshank, but rather monotone and with a sharper quality.

Plain, warbler-like tetraka. Uncommon Madagascar endemic that is found very locally in middle- and high-elevation rainforest. Canopy species that sometimes joins mixed flocks. Often sings from an exposed perch. Song is a series of high, thin notes that fades away. Similar to Rand’s Warbler, but eye-stripe is not as bold, and the color of the upperparts is more olive-green than gray. Larger than jeries, with pale legs, a pale lower half of the bill, and no streaks on the throat. Somewhat like Wedge-tailed Tetraka, but inhabits the canopy, is much paler, and lacks a gray ear patch.