Wilkins's Finch

Medium-sized chunky greenbul with a broken pale eye-ring. Note the gray head, softly striped cheek, and olive-green underparts. Common and conspicuous in montane forest. Often joins mixed flocks with other bird species. The song is a short series of barking and mewing notes.

A large, black ground bird of rainforests from the lowlands to mid-mountains. Red-orange legs stand out against the all black plumage. Bare face and a bushy feathers on top of the head give it a crested appearance. Often hammers seeds with its strong bill. The red-orange legs separate it from any similar-sized birds with which it co-occurs. Much more often heard than seen. Loud raucous call, similar to Red-billed Brushturkey but the second note rises higher.

Males are black-and-orange like an oriole, but stockier with a very thick bill. Nonbreeding males, females, and immatures typically have an orangey wash across breast with fine dark streaking on sides. Underwing coverts are always yellow. Bill usually looks bicolored, darker above and paler below. Fairly common in a variety of woodlands including mountain forests, thickets along desert streams, and backyards. Winters in Mexico. Regularly visits feeders. Listen for sweet robinlike song and squeaky call. Compare females and immatures with extremely similar Rose-breasted Grosbeak, which is usually identifiable by range. Black-headed usually has sparser and finer streaking on the underparts and more orange tones.