Taiwan Fulvetta

Typical Accipiter hawk. Adult slaty gray above and finely barred with brownish orange below. Smaller and more compact-looking than Eurasian Sparrowhawk. Soaring adults can be distinguished from Chinese Sparrowhawk by the lack of dark wingtips and striped (instead of solidly pale) underwings. In all plumages, heavily marked underwing coverts distinguish this species from Chinese Sparrowhawk. Breeds in a variety of forested hill and lowland habitats; wintering birds can also be found in more open habitats, such as forest edge and fields.

A typical mostly olive-brown thrush, with rufous coloration restricted to the center of the belly. It is most easily identified by range. Pairs occupy dense scrub and thickets in arid savanna and Karoo, grassland, and urban gardens on the South African highveld. The species gives a varied song and typical thrush “chk-chk” or thin “tseeep” calls. It is an understory specialist that sometimes skulks, but at other times can be quite bold. The similar Olive Thrush differs from Karoo Thrush in its rufous (not olive) flanks, its brown (not yellow-orange) eye-ring, its dark brown (not yellow) base to the upper mandible of the bill, and its streakier throat.

The breeding male is buff, chestnut, and black with a 21-centimeter tail that is laterally flattened with both short bulging feathers and long, tapering dagger-like feathers. The female and non-breeding male have a strongly contrasting black-and-white head, including a characteristic dark bill and a double “C” pattern under the ear. The males aggressively hold territories, but small groups forage together in dry and moist savanna. After breeding, they flock with other seedeaters. This whydah gives dry chip calls and imitates the calls of the Green-winged Pytilia, which it parasitizes. The Broad-tailed Paradise-Whydah differs from the Eastern Paradise-Whydah as follows: the breeding male has a shorter broader tail; the non-breeding male and female have a paler bill and a plainer facial pattern.