Red-throated Twinspot

A tiny well-named flycatcher with a distinctive bent bill like a broken nose. It is olive-green above with paler yellowish underparts. Note the pale gray eyes. Inconspicuous; typically seen singly in the understory of lowland forest, edge, and second-growth. Best detected by trilling calls. Occurs from Panama to Colombia; no range overlap with similar Northern Bentbill.

Small seabird that breeds in old-growth evergreen forests, sometimes far from the coast. Often in small flocks on coastal waters, where it dives underwater searching for fish. Breeding plumage is dark brown with few contrasting marks; slightly darker cap and blotchy pale belly. Nonbreeding birds are sharply patterned black, white, and gray. Note black cap that extends below the eye, a white collar, and dark grayish pattern on back. Bill is very short and thin. Similar to several other species of murrelets and difficult to distinguish without good views, but note details of face pattern and range.

As befits the name, this large, classically patterned greenbul is one of the easiest to identify visually in the field. A brown greenbul of thick bushes and forest edge, it has a bright white throat, a white belly, and white eye-arcs around its dark reddish eyes. Can be confused with Central African populations of Yellow-throated Greenbul that have white throats, but Simple Greenbul’s white eye-arcs and pale belly are distinctive. Song is a cawing, robust, variable chatter: “rar-ra-ra-kora-rawr.”