Visayan Cuckooshrike

A big, bulky, long-tailed black weaver. The bill is white in males and black in females. There is a white patch on the front edge of the shoulder, and also a pale patch in the wing that can be conspicuous in flight. Immatures are dark brown with heavy streaking below. Found in dry savanna and woodland, often in flocks. Builds huge communal stick nests. Similar to Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver, but never shows a red bill. The common call is a harsh “sjet” that is often given repeatedly by a whole group in chorus. 

A small, upright honeyguide of forest and forest edge, where it forages for insects and flycatches into the open. Plumage is a relatively uniform olive-green to green, with a paler throat, small pale eye arcs, and bright white outer tail feathers that are obvious when flying out for insects. Similar to Green-backed Honeyguide and Wahlberg’s Honeyguide, but differs in range, in its overall greenish coloration including the belly, and in its clean white outer tail feathers. Voice is little known, but apparently gives a buzzy trill in flight that rises and falls in pitch. 

Small, odd sandpiper with short legs and a long, thin bill, turned down at the tip. Upperparts dark, contrasting with the white underparts and streaky breast. Furtive, with a slow feeding action. When flushed, flight is low and often short. Bold head pattern, evident in all seasons, is the best feature to look for in winter-plumaged birds. Breeds in taiga bogs, usually at coasts and estuaries on migration and in winter.