Archbold's Nightjar

A small, brightly colored inhabitant of thickets in woodlands and scrub. Feeds actively, snatching insects from leaves and twigs. It is passingly similar to the Northern Parula, but the parula has yellow-green on its back and the yellow below does not extend onto the belly as it does on Adelaide’s. Its song is series of rapidly given sweet notes that accelerate as the song progresses before sometimes slowing again towards the end. Call is a sweet “chick” with a slight squeaky quality.

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.

Medium-sized, strikingly-plumaged tanager resembling a shrike with its mostly gray coloration, a broad black mask, and a white shoulder patch. Occurs in savanna and grasslands with scattered trees where it can be seen in small groups and sometimes accompanying mixed-species flocks. Song is a series of high chipping notes.