The most beautiful bird-Collared Puffbird

Photo Source: John.C mittermeier/Flicker

The Collared Puffbird (Bucco capensis) is a sit-and-wait hunting bird found across the northern region of South America in the Amazon Basin, southern Colombia and Venezuela, and the Guianas.

The puffbirds are an insectivorous bird family related to the jacamars, but lacking the iridescent colours of that group. The Collared Puffbird grows to about 21 cm in length, and prefers to sit and wait for prey, which has earned it nicknames such as "lazy bird" and "sleeper".

SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA

Black Robin

Black Robin

The Black Robin or Chatham Island Robin Petroica traversi is an endangered bird from the Chatham Islands off the east coast of New Zealand. It is closely related to the New Zealand Robin.

Description:

Petroica traversi is a sparrow-sized bird. Its plumage is almost entirely brownish-black, unlike its mainland counterparts, and as it evolved in the absence of mammalian predators, its flight capacity is somewhat reduced. In the early 1980s only five Black Robins survived but were saved from extinction by Don Merton and his team, and by "Old Blue", the last remaining female.

All of the surviving black robins are descended from "Old Blue", unfortunately giving little genetic variation among the population and creating an extreme population bottleneck. Interestingly, this seems to have caused no inbreeding problems, leading to speculation that the species has passed through several such population reductions in its evolutionary past and thus losing any alleles that could cause deleterious inbreeding effects. It was generally assumed that the minimum viable population protecting from inbreeding depression was around 50 individuals, but this is now known to be an inexact average, with the actual numbers being below 10 in rapidly-reproducing small-island species such as the Black Robin, to several hundred in long-lived continental species with a wide distribution (such as elephants or tigers).

Distribution:

The species is still endangered, but now numbers around 250 individuals in a single population on tiny Little Mangere Island. Ongoing restoration of habitat and eradication of introduced predators is being undertaken so that the population of this and other endangered Chatham endemics can be spread to several populations, decreasing the risk of extinction by natural disasters or similar stochastic events.

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Mountain Robin / Mountain Thrush

Mountain Robin / Mountain Thrush

The Mountain Thrush is a large thrush which breeds in highlands from southern Mexico to western Panama. This is a bird of tall mountain forests and adjacent more open areas and woodland edge. Its prefererence is for oak with many epiphytes and mosses, normally from 1800 m altitude to the timberline. It descends in flocks as low as 900 m in the wet season.

Description:The Mountain Robin resembles other Turdus thrushes in general appearance and habits. It is 23-26 cm long, and weighs 86 g on average. The adult is uniformly dull olive-brown with faint white streaks on the throat. The bill is black and the legs are dark brown. The juvenile resembles the adult, but has but has buff or orange streaks on the head and upperparts, and dark spotting on the underparts.

There are three poorly-defined subspecies:

Nominate T. p. plebejus of the mountains of Costa Rica and western Panama is described above.

T. p. differens from the Pacific slope of Mexico to Caribbean, Guatemala is more olive above, and more olive brown and less grey below

T. p. rafaelensi of the highlands from Honduras to northwestern Nicaragua is intermediate between the northern and southern subspecies above, and is often merged with differens.

Two superficially similar relatives share this species range. Sooty Robin is blacker with an orange bill, eyering and legs, and Clay-colored Robin is much paler and yellow-billed.

Feeding / Diet:

The Mountain Robin behaves like other thrushes. It forages on large branches or on the ground, in flocks when not breeding, progressing in hops and dashes with frequent stops. It turns leaf litter seeking small fruits, insects and spiders.

Breeding:

It builds a grass or rootlet-lined large cup nest, concealed amongst epiphytes, 3-12 m above the ground on a tree branch. The female lays 2-3 unmarked greenish-blue eggs between March and June.

Call / Song:

The breeding season song is an unthrushlike mechanical monotone chip chip cher chip chip cher cher, and the call is a high seee or whip. 

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Nightjar Bird

Nightjars are small to large nocturnal birds that are found around the world, except for the polar regions.

Some North American species are named as nighthawks.

They are sometimes referred to as goatsuckers, as they were often seen in fields together with goats and sheep, and the myth was born that they were there to suck milk from the teats of goats (the Latin word for goat-sucker or goat-milker is Caprimulgus). However, instead they fed on the insects that were attracted to livestock. In the past, night-flying birds - such as the nightjars - were suspected of witchery. 

The nightjar, as suggested by the name, is strictly nocturnal. Throughout the day, it typically rest quietly in densely vegetated hiding places. At night, they become active as they hunt flying insects in more open landscapes, such as forest clearings, wetlands and along rivers.

Their cryptic appearance blends perfectly into their habitat and they are very difficult to spot during the daytime, when they are usually hidden away sleeping. They are most easily detected at night when light from car headlights are reflected ruby-red from their eyes, as they are sitting on tracks or roads. However, their presence is most often made known by their loud calls given at dusk.

The common name of many of nightjars is is often derived from its call.

They inhabit desert regions, grassland and open wooded areas, and forests. They occur from sea-level up to 1,300 feet or 4,200 meters.

Eighty-nine species are currently known, with 6 species currently being threatened of extinction. Conservationists have noted that populations of Nightjars have been dramatically declining over the last years.

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Bittern Bird

Bittern


Bitterns comprise the subfamily Botaurinae, part of the heron family Ardeidae.

      These are small to medium-sized birds, which can be distinguished from other heron or egret-like birds by their necks, which are much shorter and thicker than other members of the group. In flight bitterns keep their necks retracted, in the same manner as other herons and egrets.

Bitterns are typically patterned with a streaked chest and mottled wings of various shades of brown or black. Unlike herons and egrets, which quickly take flight when disturbed, bitterns often remain still, preferring to rely on not being seen.

They are secretive in habits, remaining largely concealed amongst reedbeds, flooded grasslands and the margins of freshwater ponds, lakes and rice paddies. They may also occur at the edge of mangrove forests, but mainly prefer freshwater habitats.

They are stealth feeders, waiting patiently or advancing slowly towards their prey which  includes a variety of fishes, amphibians, aquatic reptiles and insects.

Globally 14 species of bittern are recognised, of which 5 occur in Southeast Asia.





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Hornbill Bird

Hornbill

Hornbills show considerable variation in size as a family, ranging in size from the Black Dwarf Hornbill (Tockus hartlaubi), at 102 grams (3.6 oz) and 30 cm (1 foot), to the Southern Ground Hornbill (Bucorvus leadbeateri), at up to 6.2 kg (13.6 lbs) and 1.2 m (4 feet). Males are always bigger than the females, though the extent to which this is true varies dependent upon species. The extent of sexual dimorphism also varies with body parts, for example the difference in body mass between males and females is between 1-17%, but the variation is 8-30% for bill length and 1-21% in wing length.
The most distinctive feature of the hornbills is the heavy bill, supported by powerful neck muscles as well as by the fused vertebrae. The large bill assists in fighting, preening, and constructing the nest, as well as catching prey. A feature unique to the hornbills is the casque, a hollow structure that runs along the upper mandible. In some species it is barely perceptible and appears to serve no function beyond reinforcing the bill. In other species it is quite large, is reinforced with bone, and has openings between the hollow centre allowing it to serve as a resonator for calls.In the Helmeted Hornbill the casque is not hollow but is filled with ivory and is used as a battering ram used in dramatic aerial jousts.
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Weaver Bird

Weaver Bird

Baya Weaver - male
Ploceus philippinus
Habitat : Secondary forest edge
Location : Kranji, Singapore
Notes : This nest is nearing completion, and all that remains is for the entrance tube to be added.

Baya Weaver - female
Habitat : Secondary forest edge
Location : Kranji, Singapore
Notes : The female inspects the handiwork of the male, and makes final touches where necessary.

Baya Weaver - colony
Habitat : Secondary forest edge
Location : Kranji, Singapore
Notes : Part of a colony of more than 10 nests in various stages of completion. Strips of grass for nest construction are taken from the long lalang grass in the foreground. Nest  suspended by one-metre long woven grass at Sungei Buloh, Singapore.
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Munias Bird

Munias

Munias comprise the genus Lonchura, part of the family Estrildidae. These are finch-like birds of modest size with short, powerful bills which have evolved to pluck and crush grass seed and other small grains.
Many munias are strikingly patterned, albeit with various shades of brown, plus black and white.
They are mainly open-country, marshland or forest edge birds. Many species are able to survive in semi-urban or cultivated areas where long grass and other vegetation is left untended, for example along roadsides and railway lines.
They generally congregate in small flocks of less than 10 individuals, and sometimes in mixed flocks with other munia species. Some species may congregate in large flocks when food is particularly abundant.
Spherical nests are constructed amongst tangles of open vegetation or discretely hidden amongst dense vegetation : the entrance to the nest is from the side. Such nests may be vulnerable to predation from tree climbing snakes.
Munias are distributed from Africa, through South Asia and Southeast Asia to the western Pacific (especially New Guinea). Around 20 species of munia occur within Southeast Asia.
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Asian Crested Ibis

Asian Crested Ibis

 This species is the only member of the genus Nipponia.
They make their nests at the tops of trees on hills usually overlooking their habitat. Crested Ibises usually eat frogs, small fish, and small animals.
At one time, the Crested Ibis was widespread in Japan, China, Korea, Taiwan, and Russia. It has now disappeared from most of its former range. The last wild Crested Ibis in Japan died in October 2003, with the remaining wild population found only in Shaanxi province of China until reintroduction of captive bred birds back into Japan in 2008. They were previously thought to be extinct in China too, until 1981 when only seven ibises were seen in Shaanxi, China.
Extensive captive breeding programs have been developed by Japan and China to conserve the species. They were put on the State Protection List in China. Also, for the past 23 years, China has bred and protected the species. In 2002, there was a total of 130 colonies in China. Northwest Shaanxi province's research center has a history of 26 Crested Ibis fledglings including artificial, and natural incubation. On July 31, 2002, five out of seven Crested Ibis chicks hatched at an incubation center in northwest Shaanxi province. This was one of the latest records and highest record ever recorded of chicks that hatched. The parents of the chicks were chosen from 60 ibis pairs raised at that research center.
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Forest Owlet

Forest Owlet

The Forest Owlet is small (23 cm) and stocky. It is a typical owlet with a rather unspotted crown and heavily banded wings and tail. They have a relatively large skull and beak. Unlike the Spotted Owlet, the Forest Owlet has the fewer and fainter spots on the crown and back. The upperparts are dark grey-brown. The upper breast is almost solid brown and the sides are barred with a white central wedge in the lower breast that is sometimes unmarked, especially in males. The primaries are darker and distinct. The wings and tail are banded with white trailing edges. A dark carpal patch on the underwing visible in flight. The facial disc is pale and the eyes are yellow.
The species epithet commemorates F. R. Blewitt, the collector of the first specimen that was obtained in December 1872 from Busnah-Phooljan near Basna on the Phuljar highway in eastern Madhya Pradesh. The specimen was sent to Allan Octavian Hume who described it in 1873.
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Kakapo Parrot

Kakapo

The kakapo is one of the largest species of parrot in the world with the average adult kakapo growing to around 60 cm in height. The kakapo is the heaviest species of parrot in the world and it is due to this weight that the kakapo is one of the few bird species that is unable to fly.

The kakapo is native to the forests of New Zealand and the kakapo is not found in the wild anywhere else in the world. The flightless kakapo is thought to have once thrived in it's New Zealand habitat due to the fact that there were no mammals that would hunt the kakapo, and this is thought to be another reason as to why the kakapo has evolved to be a ground dwelling bird.

Like many other animal species found on New Zealand's islands, the kakapo was of great importance to the local tribes people and the kakapo appears in many local tales and folklore. The native people would hunt the kakapo for it's meat and it's feathers which the local tribesmen would use to make clothes.

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Brazilian Merganser

Brazilian Merganser

The Brazilian merganser is one of the ten most threatened waterfowl in the world, with possibly fewer than 250 birds thought to remain . This dark, slender duck has a shiny dark-green hood with a long crest, which is usually shorter and worn-looking in females . Upperparts are dark grey while the breast is light grey, getting paler towards the whitish belly, and a white wing patch (speculum) is particularly noticeable in flight . The bill is long and dark , shorter in the female , and the legs are pink to orange-red.
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Great Indian Bustard

Indian Bustard

The Great Indian Bustard is a large ground bird with a height of about a metre. It is unmistakable with its black cap contrasting with the pale head and neck. The body is brownish with a black patch spotted in white. The male is deep sandy buff coloured and during the breeding season has a black breast band. The crown of the head is black and crested and is puffed up by displaying males. In the female which is smaller than the male, the head and neck are not pure white and the breast band is either rudimentary, broken or absent.
Males have a well-developed gular pouch which is inflated when calling during display and helps produce the deep resonant calls.Among bustards, this species is smaller only than the Kori Bustard and the Great Bustard in size. It is also the largest land bird in its native range. The Great Indian Bustard stands at about 1 m (3.3 ft) tall, having a somewhat long neck and quite long legs. The female as in most members of the bustard family are typically considerably smaller.
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Jungle Babbler Bird

 Jungle Bbbler of Asia

The Jungle Babbler's habitat is forest and cultivation. This species, like most babblers, is non-migratory, and has short rounded wings and a weak flight. The sexes are identical, drably coloured in brownish grey with a yellow-bill making them confusable only with the endemic Yellow-billed Babblers of peninsular India and Sri Lanka. The upperparts are usually slightly darker in shade and there is some mottling on the throat and breast. The race somervillei of Maharastra has a very rufous tail and dark primary flight feathers.The Jungle Babbler can be separated from the White-headed Babbler by the dark loreal zone between the bill and the eye as well as the lack of a contrasting light crown. The calls of the two species are however distinct and unmistakable. The Jungle Babbler has harsh nasal calls while the White-headed Babbler has high pitched calls. Another babbler that is similarly found in urban areas is the Large Grey Babbler, however that species has a distinctive long tail with white outer tail feathers.
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Treeswift Bird

Treeswift 

Treeswifts are small to medium sized swifts, ranging in length from 15–30 cm. They have long wings, with most of the length coming from the length of the primaries; their arms are actually quite short. They visibly differ from the other swifts in matters of plumag, which is softer, and they have crests or other facial ornaments, and long forked tails. Anatomically they are separated from the true swifts by skeletal details in the cranium and palate, the anatomy of the tarsus, and a non-reversible hind toe which is used for perching on branches (an activity that true swifts are unable to engage in). 

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American Robin

American Robin

American Robins are fairly large songbirds with a large, round body, long legs, and fairly long tail. Robins are the largest North American thrushes, and their profile offers a good chance to learn the basic shape of most thrushes. Robins make a good reference point for comparing the size and shape of other birds, too.
American Robins are gray-brown birds with warm orange underparts and dark heads. In flight, a white patch on the lower belly and under the tail can be conspicuous. Compared with males, females have paler heads that contrast less with the gray back.
American Robins are industrious and authoritarian birds that bound across lawns or stand erect, beak tilted upward, to survey their environs. When alighting they habitually flick their tails downward several times. In fall and winter they form large flocks and gather in trees to roost or eat berries.
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Northern Mockingbird

Northern Mockingbird

If you’ve been hearing an endless string of 10 or 15 different birds singing outside your house, you might have a Northern Mockingbird in your yard. These slender-bodied gray birds apparently pour all their color into their personalities. They sing almost endlessly, even sometimes at night, and they flagrantly harass birds that intrude on their territories, flying slowly around them or prancing toward them, legs extended, flaunting their bright white wing patches.
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Peregrine Falcon

Peregrine Falcon

Powerful and fast-flying, the Peregrine Falcon hunts medium-sized birds, dropping down on them from high above in a spectacular stoop. They were virtually eradicated from eastern North America by pesticide poisoning in the middle 20th century. After significant recovery efforts, Peregrine Falcons have made an incredible rebound and are now regularly seen in many large cities and coastal areas.
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American Crow

American Crow

American Crows are familiar over much of the continent: large, intelligent, all-black birds with hoarse, cawing voices. They are common sights in treetops, fields, and roadsides, and in habitats ranging from open woods and empty beaches to town centers. They usually feed on the ground and eat almost anything – typically earthworms, insects and other small animals, seeds, and fruit but also garbage, carrion, and chicks they rob from nests. Their flight style is unique, a patient, methodical flapping that is rarely broken up with glides. Crows are rarely found alone.

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WaxWing Bird

WaxWing 

Waxwings are characterised by soft silky plumage. (Bombycilla, the genus name, is Vieillot's attempt at Latin for "silktail", translating the German name Seidenschwänze.) They have unique red tips to some of the wing feathers where the shafts extend beyond the barbs; in the Bohemian andCedar Waxwings, these tips look like sealing wax, and give the group its common name (Holloway 2003). The legs are short and strong, and the wings are pointed. The male and female have the same plumage. All three species have mainly brown plumage, a black line through the eye and black under the chin, a square-ended tail with a red or yellow tip, and a pointed crest. The bill, eyes, and feet are dark. Calls are high-pitched, buzzing or trilling monosyllables (Sibley 2000, MacKinnon and Phillipps 2000).They are not true long-distance migrants, but wander erratically outside the breeding season and move south from their summer range in winter. In poor berry years huge numbers can erupt well beyond their normal range, often in flocks that on occasion number in the thousands (Witmer and Avery 2003).
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