Angola Batis

A large, chunky, thickset weaver. The male is chocolate-brown with red legs and a hefty vermilion bill; the female and juvenile are paler and streaky underneath, with paler bills. In flight the species shows striking white wing patches. Family groups prefer dry woodlands with large trees that hold their sprawling and messy communal nests. Buffalo-Weavers forage on the ground in small to large groups, often in association with starlings and other birds, searching for insects, seeds, and fruit. Their odd electronic-sounding vocalizations often draw attention to them. The similar White-billed Buffalo-Weaver does not have a red or pinkish-orange bill.

Attractive foliage-gleaner found in dry and semi-humid forest in western Ecuador and northwestern Peru. Plumage is brown with an orange to reddish hood and chestnut wings and tail. Usually stays quite low and sometimes hunts for food on the ground. It stays in dense cover, and is easier to see in the dry season when many trees and bushes lose their leaves. Song is a short burst of odd, nasal notes repeated every several seconds. Threatened by habitat loss.

Largest hummingbird in the world, with its size compensating for rather drab plumage; no similar species. Plumage is drab greenish above with a big whitish rump patch and dingy below with variable rusty tones and dusky spotting. Favors rather open and dry habitats from matorral and gardens to Andean scrub; often perches conspicuously atop bushes or on roadside wires. Flight is “slow” with powerful wingbeats, often hovering in jerky manner and chasing insects. Loud sharp calls can draw attention.