White-eared barbet

Stactolaema leucotis

Photo by Johan van Rensburg (Wikipedia)

Common name:
white-eared barbet (en); barbaças-de-orelhas-brancas (pt); barbican oreillard (fr); barbudo orejiblanco (es); weißohr-bartvogel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Piciformes
Family Capitonidae

Range:
This species occur in two disjunct areas in eastern Africa. The subspecies S.l. kilimensis is found in central and south-eastern Kenya, and in north-eastern Tanzania, while subspecies S.l. leucotis is found from Malawi and northern Mozambique, through eastern Zimbabwe and into Swaziland and north-eastern South Africa.

Size:
These birds are 17-18 cm long and weigh 48-63 g.

Habitat:
The white-eared barbet is mostly found in moist tropical forests, including Brachystegia and Uapaca forests and woodlands, also using plantations and rural gardens. They occur from sea level up to an altitude of 2.600 m.

Diet:
They feed mainly on fruits, especially wild figs but also other small fruits and berries and domesticated fruits such as guavas, papaws and mangoes. They also take some insects, especially during the breeding season, including termite alates, grasshoppers, dragonflies, cicadas, roaches, wasps and hornets.

Breeding:
White-eared barbets breed in June-March. They are monogamous, cooperative breeders, with the breeding pair being helped by up to 6 helpers. The nest is excavated by both parents and helpers, consisting of a hole on the underside of a dead tree branch. The female lays 3-6 eggs, which are incubated by both parents and helpers for 14-18 days. The chicks fledge about 39 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range and is reported to be locally common to uncommon. The population is suspected to be in decline owing to removal of dead trees which are required for nesting and roosting, and habitat fragmentation.

Mindanao pygmy babbler

Stachyris plateni

Photo by Nobuo Matsumura (Oriental Bird Images)

Common name:
Mindanao pygmy babbler (en); zaragateiro-pigmeu-de-Mindanao (pt); timalie pygmée de Mindanao (fr); timalí de Mindanao (de); zwergbuschtimalie (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Timaliidae

Range:
This species is endemic to the island of Mindanao, in the southern Philippines.

Size:
These birds are 10 cm long and weigh 7,5-10 g.

Habitat:
The Mindanao pygmy babbler is found in primary rainforests and adjacent second growths and cultivated areas. They are present at altitudes of 100-1.100 m.

Diet:
They feed on insects and small fruits, usually foraging in small groups sometimes together with other babblers.

Breeding:
These birds possibly breed in March-May. The nest is made of white, fluffy plant material, including seeds. There is no further information about their reproduction.

Conservation:
IUCN status - NT (Near-Threatened)
This species has a relatively large breeding range but is described as uncommon to rare. Despite their tolerance to habitat degradation, the population is suspected to be declining at a moderately rapid rate due to logging and clearance of forests for agriculture.The species occurs in several protected areas, but measures are still needed to effectively protect the forests there.

Rufous-winged tyrannulet

Mecocerculus calopterus

Photo by Eric LoPresti (Natural Musings)

Common name:
rufous-winged tyrannulet (en); alegrinho-d'asa-ruiva (pt); tyranneau à ailes rousses (fr); piojito alirrufo (es); rotschwingen-tachurityrann (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Tyrannidae

Range:
This species is found in the Andes of western and south-eastern Ecuador, and northern Peru
south to Lambayeque and La Libertad.

Size:
These birds are 11 cm long and weigh 10-11 g.

Habitat:
The rufous-winged tyrannulet is found in moist tropical forests and dry deciduous forests, mainly in mountainous areas but also in the lowlands. They also use plantations and second growths and occur at altitudes of 400-1.950 m.

Diet:
They forage alone or in pairs, often joining mixed-species foraging flocks, and take various adult and larval insects, and spiders.

Breeding:
There is no information about the reproduction of this species.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a relatively large breeding range and is described as uncommon. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Plumbeous kite

Ictinia plumbea

Photo by Michael Andersen (Flickr)

Common name:
plumbeous kite (en); sovi (pt); milan bleuâtre (fr); elanio plomizo (es); schwebeweih (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Falconiformes
Family Accipitridae

Range:
This species is found from eastern Mexico south to southern Brazil and northern Argentina. West of the Andes they also occur as far south as southern Ecuador.

Size:
These birds are 29-38 cm long and have a wingspan of 70-95 cm. They weigh 190-280 g.

Habitat:
The plumbeous kite is found in various forest habitats, especially lowland rainforests, but also mountain rainforests, mangroves, dry tropical forests and dry savannas. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.700 m.

Diet:
They mainly hunt insects in flight, including beetles, dragonflies, grasshoppers, butterflies, bugs, bees, wasps, flying ants, lacewings, cicadas and termite alates. They also take some small vertebrates, including lizards, snakes, birds, bats and frogs.

Breeding:
Plumbeous kites breeds in March-November. The nest is built by both sexes, consisting of a small, flat cup made of sticks and lined with leaves and moss. It is placed high in a tree, at the base of a branch. Often the same nest is used by a pair over several years. The female lays 1-2 white of pale bluish eggs, which are incubated by both parents for 31-33 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 36-39 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has an extremely large breeding range and the global population is estimated at 0,5-5 million individuals. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Variable sunbird

Nectarinia venustus

Photo by Jim Watt (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
variable sunbird (en); beija-flor-de-barriga-amarela (pt); souimanga à ventre jaune (fr); suimanga variable (es); ziernektarvogel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Nectariniidae

Range:
This species is patchily distributed across sub-Saharan Africa, with subspecies N.v. venustus being found from Senegal east to northern Cameroon and western Central African Republic, while the remaining for subspecies occur from southern Sudan and Eritrea, south to Tanzania, and through southern D.R. Congo and Zambia, into Angola, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

Size:
These birds are 10-11 cm long and weigh 5-10 g.

Habitat:
The variable sunbird is mostly found in dry savannas and dry scrubands, but alsouse a wide range of other habitats such as grasslands, rainforests, mangroves, rivers and streams, and man-made habitats including pastures, arable land, plantations, rural gardens and urban areas.

Diet:
They feed mainly on nectar, but also take adult and larval insects, especially during the breeding season.

Breeding:
Variable sunbirds breed all year round, possibly with some variation among different parts of their range. The nest is built mainly by the female,  consisting of an oval-shaped structure made of fine grass stems and blades, fibres, rootlets, leaves and flower heads bound together with spider web. It is often camouflaged with large bits of material, and lined with plant down and other fine plant materials. The nest is typically placed in a tall weed or small sapling, or occasionally in a deserted building. The female lays 1-2 eggs, which she incubates alone for 14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 12-16 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as common. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Rufous-fronted thornbird

Phacellodomus rufifrons

Photo by Nick Athanas (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
rufous-fronted thornbird (en); joão-de-pau (pt); synallaxe à front roux (fr); espinero común (es); rotstirn-bündelnister (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Furnariidae

Range:
This species occurs in four disjunct areas in South America, one in northern Venezuela and eastern Colombia, another in northern Peru and marginally into southern Ecuador, a third  in Bolivia, adjacent parts of Brazil and south to Paraguay and northern Argentina, and finally another in eastern Brazil, from Maranhão to Pernambuco and south to Minas Gerais.

Size:
These birds are 16-17 cm long and weigh 18-31 g.

Habitat:
The rufous-fronted thornbird is found in dry scrublands, savannas and tropical forests, also using second growth, from sea level up to an altitude of 2.000 m.

Diet:
They forage on low vegetation and on the ground, taking various insects such as beetles, grasshoppers, bugs and ants.

Breeding:
Rufous-fronted thornbirds breed can possibly breed all year round, varying among different parts of their range. They can nest cooperatively, with helpers participating in nest defence and feeding the young. The nest is a huge structure made of twigs, placed in the outer branches of a tree, inside of which is the spherical nest chamber that is lined with feathers and other soft materials. The nest are so large that other bird species may also use parts of the structure as nest. The female lays 3 eggs, but there is no information regarding the incubation and fledging periods.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as common. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Eurasian dotterel

Eudromias morinellus

Photo by Peter Nielsen (Danmarks Fugle og Natur)

Common name:
Eurasian dotterel (en); borrelho-ruivo (pt); pluvier guignard (fr); chorlito carambolo (es); mornellregenpfeifer (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Charadriiformes
Family Charadriidae

Range:
This species breeds patchily in the northernmost parts of Eurasia, from the northern British Isles, and through northern Scandinavia and northern Russia and as far east as western Alaska. They also breed in central Asia, in northern Mongolia and Kazakhstan and adjacent southern Russia. They migrate south or south-west to winter around the Mediterranean, especially in northern Africa but also in the eastern Iberian Peninsula and in the Middle East from Egypt and Syria east to Iraq and extreme south-western Iran.

Size:
These birds are 20-24 cm long and have a wingspan of 57-64 cm. Females tend to be larger than males, weighing 100-140 g while males weigh 85-115 g.

Habitat:
The Eurasian dotterel breeds on flat, open uplands, on mountain ridges and plateaus with sparse vegetation, and on coastal and inland tundra of moss, short grass or lichen and bare patches of rock. Outside the breeding season they use open grasslands and dry scrublands, stony and scrubby steppes and semi-deserts, and arable land.

Diet:
They feed mainly on adult and larval insects, including beetles, flies, butterflies and moth, grasshoppers, crickets, earwigs and ants, as well as spiders, snails and earthworms, and plant matter such as leaves, seeds, berries and flowers.

Breeding:
Eurasian dotterels breed in May-August, either in solitary pairs or in loose groups of 2-5 pairs. They are polyandrous, with females most often leaving after laying the eggs to find another mate. The nest is a shallow scrape on bare ground or short vegetation, where the female lays 3-4 eggs. In most cases the eggs are incubated by the male, but sometimes by both parents, for 18-27 days. The chicks leave the nest soon after hatching and are immediately able to feed themselves, but rely on the father for protection until they fledge, about 30 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range, but the global population is estimated at just 50.000-220.000 individuals. The overall population trend is decreasing, although some populations have unknown trends, and the species may suffer in the future from the predicted dramatic climate change effects in high-Arctic habitats.