Buru Golden-Bulbul

Anis are bizarre, coal-black cuckoos with long floppy tails and unique, curiously tall, flattened bills. Smooth-billed occurs in a variety of open and semi-open habitats in tropical lowlands and foothills, typically staying low in shrubs and grasses. Gregarious and not particularly graceful; usually seen crashing around awkwardly in small groups. Flies with choppy wingbeats and long glides. Widespread and common throughout much of South America and the Caribbean, extending as far west as the Pacific slope of Costa Rica and north to Florida. Compare with the very similar Groove-billed Ani, which overlaps in some areas of Central and South America. Note especially the bill shape: Smooth-billed often (but not always) has a taller ridge on the top of the bill, and a sharper angle on the lower edge of the bill. The sides are typically smooth, rarely with weak grooves. Voice is also important: listen for a rising, hawklike whistle with an inflection at the end. Dark eye, size, and habitat help separate from Greater Ani in South America and Panama.

Small, furtive, ground-dwelling songbird with thin white eyebrow. Adult males are slaty above and dusky ochre below, with a bright white eyebrow. Female is duller and browner overall, with a thinner eyebrow. Breeds in montane forests, favoring areas with a dense brushy understory, such as dwarf bamboo or Rhododendron. Descends into foothills during the winter, generally in similarly dense habitats. Song is a short burst of pleasant warbled notes, and calls include a rising and mellow “wheet.”

Cryptic, uncommon nightbird of evergreen and mixed foothill and montane forests (900-2000 meters). Both sexes have dappled lichen-like plumage, the male grayish, female rusty brown. Silent birds are best distinguished from other small frogmouths by range, habitat, elevation, and bird’s comparatively small size. Song a long, haunting whistle, given repeatedly in series.