Ameline Swiftlet

Very finely-speckled dark-grayish duck with a dark eye and an obvious peaked crown. Beak is strongly curved like a ski-jump. Breeding males have a red base to their bill. Upper-wing is dark, while under-wing is paler gray. When perched, distinguish from Hardhead (which have a pale belly patch). Generally uncommon; found beside inland waterholes and ponds. More reliable inland, but can be common one year and absent the next from any given location.

Large flycatcher found at all levels of humid forests; occasionally accompanying mixed-species flocks. The head is gray while the upperparts and breast are rufous and the underparts are yellowish. The subspecies in Bahia has a partially rufous throat and a white chin. Similar to the smaller Rufous-tailed Attila, but lacks the rufous throat. Typically sits motionlessly before flycatching. Its voice is a far-carrying series of “wee” whistled notes repeated for long periods.

Poorly known Peruvian endemic found only in high Andean cloud forest northeast of the city of Huancayo. It was described to science in 2013. Adult male is plain gray, lacking the rufous barring on the lower underparts shown by Rufous-vented Tapaculo and Trilling Tapaculo. Female plumage not yet known with certainty. Younger birds are heavily marked with bars or scales. Best identified by range and voice. Typical song is a lengthy series that starts out with simple notes and gradually transitions into sputtering bursts.