Blue-black Kingfisher

Chunky black and white bird with a stout bill. Ranges in lowland and foothill rainforest west of the Andes in Ecuador and far southwestern Colombia. Note orange forehead and large white spots on the lower back. Male has white underparts with streaked flanks; female has black throat and breast, and white scaling on the back. Male can be distinguished from Five-colored Barbet by white underparts, crown, and nape. Typically stays high in the canopy, where it joins mixed-species flocks of tanagers and other small birds.

A nondescript songbird that skulks in taiga undergrowth, where very difficult to see well. Breeds on Hokkaido, Sakhalin Island, and the Kuril Islands. Very similar to Gray’s Grasshopper-Warbler, which breeds on mainland of far northeastern Asia and has a different song. Migrants very difficult to distinguish from Gray’s, but Sakhalin averages warmer-toned and browner, with perhaps a slightly paler throat. Sings from deep cover, day and night, a hurried, loud, choppy song.

A medium-sized, boldly-patterned, dark-and-white eagle. In flight the underwing is brown and white with a thick black hind edge, and the tail is mostly pale gray with a thick dark bar at the end; these combine to give it a unique plumage pattern in flight. Immature birds have entirely rufous underparts, including the underwings. Resident in semi-arid rangelands, savanna, and riverine forest, where it primarily hunts birds; francolins and guineafowls are favored. Fairly quiet, but occasionally utters a distinctive melodious “klooeee”.