Barred Antshrike

Kicau Nusantara The Barred Antshrike, Thamnophilus doliatus, is a passerine bird in the antbird family. It is found in the Neotropics from Tamaulipas, Mexico, through Central America, Trinidad and Tobago, and a large part of South America east of the Andes as far south as northern Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay. There is one accepted record from southern Texas.[1] It is found in a wide range of wooded habitats (even gardens and parks) in both humid and arid regions. Throughout a large part of its range, it is among the most common antbirds. The Barred Antshrike is typically 16.5 cm long, and weighs 25 g. The male is barred all over with black and white, and has a white-based black crest that is raised in display. The female is rufous above with a chestnut crest. The sides of her head and neck are streaked with black, and the underparts are rich buff.

The subspecies vary primarily in the overall darkness and the amount of barring and hue of the underparts. For example, in the Tobagoian race T. d. tobagensis males are whiter below, and females darker, than in the nominate subspecies. The most distinctive subspecies is capistratus of the Caatinga in north-eastern Brazil, where males have uniform black crown (no white barring to the base) and females have streaked throat and faintly barred belly. It is also the only subspecies where the iris is deep maroon-red (not yellow). It has recently been suggested that it should be considered a separate species, the Caatinga Barred Antshrike. wikipedia

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American Bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus)

Kicau Nusantara The American Bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus) is the only species in the family Aegithalidae found in the New World, and the only member of the genus Psaltriparus.

The American Bushtit inhabits mixed open woodlands, often containing oaks and a scrubby chaparral understory ; it also inhabits parks and gardens. It is a year-round resident of the western United States and highland parts of Mexico, ranging from Vancouver through the Great Basin and the lowlands and foothills of California to southern Mexico and Guatemala.

The American Bushtit is one of the smallest passerines in North America, at 11 cm in length and 5-6 gms in weight. It is gray-brown overall, with a large head, a short neck, a long tail, and a short stubby bill. The male has dark eyes and the adult female, yellow. Coastal forms have a brown "cap" while those in the interior have brown "mask."

The American Bushtit is active and gregarious, foraging for small insects and spiders in mixed-species feeding flocks containing species such as chickadees and warblers, of 10 to over 40 individuals. Members of the group constantly make contact calls to each other that can be described as a short spit.

Black-eared Bushtit

The "Black-eared" Bushtit was formerly considered a separate species (P. melanotis). It can be identified by its dark ear patch (the auricular). This polymorphism does not occur in the northern part of the American Bushtits' range, but is first noted near the Mexican border, primarily in Texas. Most individuals with the black ear patch in that area are juvenile males, and none are adult females – some have only one or two dark lines on the face instead of a complete patch. The Black-eared form becomes more common southward in the northeastern (but not the northwestern) highlands of Mexico until from central Mexico south, all males have a complete black ear patch and even adult females have a black arc over the eye and usually a black line through the eye.

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