Dark-backed Imperial-Pigeon

A small dark bird that creeps around mossy forest understory, frequently hanging upside-down like a nuthatch. Overall dark brown with warm buffy throat and spotting down the chest. Sexes alike. Combination of dark plumage, behavior, and spotting render this species distinctive. Found singly or in pairs, often following a mixed flock through the forest. Listen for its fast, descending, tinkling trill.

Attractive small “finch” that is actually a tanager of the high Andes; found in villages, agricultural terraces, scrubby slopes, and bogs. Associates readily with other small seed-eating birds and in some places is tame and acclimated, begging for food at picnic sites. Handsome male is striking and distinctive with a golden back and plain dark wings (compare with smaller siskins). Female and immature are duller, but dark slaty hood and golden tones to back are distinctive. Compare with Gray-hooded Sierra-Finch to south and Peruvian Sierra-Finch to north.

Small blue vanga that acts like a creeper or small woodpecker, feeding by climbing up tree trunks. Male is all blue, while female is greenish-blue on the back; both have a coral-colored bill. Madagascar endemic that is found in eastern rainforest at low and middle elevations. Usually in pairs, which are typically part of mixed flocks of other bird species. Most common call is a high, accelerating, slurred trill. Size, color, and tree-creeping habits make it distinctive.