Arafura Fantail

Fairly small rufous-brown bird found on the east slope of the Andes from Colombia to Bolivia. Wings and tail are bright rufous, contrasting with duller brown body and head. Note rufous cap and slightly paler eyebrow. Compare with Red-faced Spinetail, which has entirely rufous cheek and crown. Look for singles or pairs in the middle levels and canopy of montane forest and edge from around 900 to 2,000 m. Forages with mixed-species flocks, hitching along branches and probing into patches of moss and clumps of dead leaves.

Small, warbler-like tanager of tropical lowlands. Favors forest edge, woodland, and semi-open areas with taller trees. Often occurs in small groups, sometimes larger flocks, usually in the canopy of flowering trees, where it probes for nectar with its long bill. Red legs are bright on male, dullest on young birds. Male is blue in breeding plumage, with a turquoise cap; female and non-breeding male are greenish overall with faint streaking on the chest. In flight, the underside of the wings flash bright sulphur-yellow.

Tiny, disproportionately long-tailed, active, and vocal. The upperparts are gray-brown with heavy dark streaking, the underparts are pale, and each tail feather shows both pale and dark tips. Generally found in rather moist habitats within arid zones, including field margins, riparian woodland, scrub, gardens, and wetlands; can be quite numerous. Very vocal, especially in spring. The song is a rattling series of dry chirps, subtly different from the slower-paced song of Graceful Prinia. Males often sing from obvious perches. Visually extremely similar to Graceful Prinia, but there is little overlap in range. In any areas of overlap, best separated by song, but Delicate is also slightly longer- and narrower-tailed and browner.