Chestnut-winged Babbler

Enigmatic and distinctive, this compact all-dark martin has striking red eyes and a bright orange-red bill. Juvenile is duller. In lethargic flight it appears bulky-headed, short-tailed, and triangular-winged. Small to large groups forage high over forested rivers, swamps, and coastal scrub. Birds migrate between two breeding areas, one in coastal central Africa from Gabon to northern Angola (August to December), and another farther inland, centered on the Congo River in west-central Democratic Republic of Congo (January to May), but their habits remain poorly understood. Calls include a scratchy chattering “skeer-skeer”; large flocks can become cacophonous. 

Small. Greenish-yellow above and brighter yellow below, with a broad, bold white eye-ring. Mostly inhabits forested areas, but common in open scrub and gardens. Silvereye is similar but has a dark gray back and peachy-buff underparts. Yellow-fronted’s common call is a high-pitched “tzeep-tzeep,” repeated frequently.

A rare medium-sized owl of lowland and foothill forest on Tablas, Romblon, and Sibuyan islands. Upperparts, chest, and head dark brown and indistinctly barred. Underparts reddish brown. Note the long whiskers around the face and the bright yellow eyes. Probably the only owl in its range except for Mantanani Scops-Owl, but Romblon Boobook is reddish rather than gray and lacks the black line around the face. Song is a phrase of three notes, “wik weu-weu,” with the second and third being descending rasping notes.