Blue-capped Tanager

Nest parasite that lays its eggs in the nests of Jameson’s Firefinch. Breeding males are glossy purplish-black, with a pale brownish panel in the wings, while females and non-breeding males are streaky and brown on the back and pale below, with a bold facial pattern. The bill is whitish and the legs very pale pink. Found in forest edge, cultivation, thick woodland, and scrub. Mimics the vocalizations of its host firefinches: a fast trill. Extremely similar to Variable Indigobird. In South Africa, separated by its pale pinkish legs. Elsewhere, breeding males probably slightly more glossy but only separated with certainty by hearing mimicked vocalizations of host species.

The male of this small falcon is sooty gray with rufous-orange thighs and vent. The females are duller gray above, and their white underparts are well marked with dark chevrons. The combination of reddish-orange eyering, cere, and feet distinguishes them from all other falcons. These champion migrants breed in eastern Siberia and winter in southern Africa, often congregating in huge roosts on passage through India. They feed mainly on insects that they either catch on the wing or pick from the ground.

Large, spectacular, and solidly built hummingbird of humid evergreen and pine-evergreen forest in mountains; uncommon. Feeds at all levels on flowers and sometimes perches on prominent high twigs. Most striking feature is the bright rusty wings, which typically flash brightly as it hovers at flowers; also note the big white spot behind the eye. Male often looks blackish below; the pink throat rarely catches the light. Female is dusky grayish below.