House Bunting

Medium-sized owl typically found in mountainous regions with mixed conifers and oaks. Overall brown with bold white spots on belly and back. Black eyes, unlike most other owls; main confusion species is Barred Owl. Spotted is well-named, with much more obvious spots on chest and belly than Barred Owl, and lacks distinct vertical stripes. Also note voice: one hoot, followed by a pair of hoots, followed by a final single hoot. Two separate populations: birds along the Pacific coast and the Sierra Nevada average darker, richer brown than birds further south and inland.

The smallest of the crested penguins. Note the thin yellow eyebrows that, once past the eyes, flare out toward the rear of the head. The species consists of two subspecies, the Eastern and Western Rockhopper Penguins. The Western Rockhopper Penguin breeds on offshore islands off southern Chile and Argentina and on the Falkland Islands, while the Eastern Rockhopper Penguin breeds on various subantarctic islands around New Zealand and the southern Indian Ocean. The Eastern has even eyebrows with pink skin at the base of the bill; the Western has black skin at the base of the bill, with an uneven eyebrow shape. Vagrants occasionally reach the Snares Islands. Distinguished from Snares Penguin by thinner eyebrow and smaller bill, and from Moseley’s Rockhopper Penguin by shorter, less flowing crest.

Rather plain seedeater with a gray nape, yellow underparts, and olive-green back. Found in fynbos, woodland, grassland, and gardens. Usually in small flocks. Distinctive call is a short, high-pitched trill, often given in flight. Song is a frantic, warbled jumble of notes. Separated from similarly sized seedeaters by gray nape and lack of facial markings.