Campbell's Fairywren

Small becard occurring from southwest Colombia to northwest Peru, mainly on the west slope of the Andes and in the Marañon drainage, but (perhaps seasonally?) on the east slope of the Andes as well. Mostly found in foothills, in middle to upper levels of humid montane forest, dry forest, and more open second-growth. Male is mostly gray with bold white edges on the wing feathers and a black cap with pale spectacles. Compare with White-winged Becard, which has a black back and dark lores. Female is very different; look for her brown cap bordered with black, white spectacles, pale yellowish belly, and tawny edges on wing feathers. Extremely similar to Black-and-white Becard, with potential range overlap on the east slope of the Andes in Ecuador and Peru. Male Cryptic shows a narrower upper wingbar, paler lores, a grayer upperside of the tail, and a more slender bill than Black-and-white. Female Cryptic has a duller brownish crown with a narrower black border. These features may all be difficult or impossible to assess in the field; some birds are best left unidentified. Also note voice: song a fast series of two sweet downslurred whistles followed by a stuttered upslurred whistle, often repeated two or three times. Black-and-white’s song is slower, with longer notes.

Small owl restricted to cloud forest in Colombia’s Santa Marta Mountains. Plumage is almost identical to that of Tropical Screech-Owl, with which it was confused until differences in voice were noted. Color is variable and ranges from dull brown to rusty. Typical song is a rapid series of soft notes that rises and then falls in pitch; it is much longer and steadier than the song of Tropical Screech-Owl, which is found in lower and drier parts of the mountains. Regularly encountered in and around El Dorado Nature Reserve.

This well-named hummingbird is entirely glittering green with blue highlights on the crown and belly. The tail is rather long and noticeably notched. The bill is slightly decurved and most of the lower mandible is dull reddish. Females are more speckled below than males. Found in open woodlands or scrubby habitats, where they often feed from flowers in the canopy.