Iraq Babbler

A beautiful and restricted bowerbird of lower montane forest of the Adelberg Range. Mainly black plumage with a large yellow patch in the wing and a bright orange crest stretching from the forehead down to the lower back. Female, brown back with barred belly. Often seen at large, fruiting fig trees. Male unmistakable but female somewhat similar to a female bird of paradise, but has a duller brown back. Call, a loud rasping note that sounds rather like a taser.

A small, stub-tailed, thick-billed songbird, with dark upperparts, white throat, and yellow on the underside. Males are dark, blackish-blue above, while the duller females are gray on the upperside. Usually in pairs, within the treetops of wet forest and adjoining areas. The only similar species would be female sunbirds, which can be eliminated on bill shape; White-throated Flowerpecker possesses a stubby bill. Song is a series of ascending high notes, and call is a single very high-pitched “whit” note.

Medium-sized flycatcher-like bird found in lowlands and foothills from Venezuela to Peru. Male dark blackish above and gray below. Female is rusty overall, but paler buffy on the belly. Note gray lores on the female to help separate them from other rusty-colored becards. Singles or pairs can be found in middle to upper levels of forest or open woodlands.