#thick billed vireo

[proton-wobbler]

Vireo Showdown; Bracket 2, Poll 2

Fun Fact!

Yellow-winged: these small birds join mixed-species feeding flocks and tag along with Flame-throated Warblers

Thick-billed: a subspecies known as the Providencia Vireo is sometimes referred to as its own species

For more information on these birds, check out these Species Features:

Yellow-winged Vireo | Thick-billed Vireo

Image Sources: YWVI (Ryan Andrews); TBVI (Melissa James)

[musictherapy611]

Daily Bird: Thick-Billed Vireo

Range: southeast Florida, the Florida Keys

More information: here

Photo: https : // rollingharbour . files . wordpress . com/2014/12/thick-billed-vireo-cn-copy.jpg

[namelists]

a list of names inspired by: birds

this list includes names of birds, birdlike names, and the meanings of each one.

Alouette: French for “lark”

Altair/Altaira: Arabic for ‘the flying eagle’

Ani: a species of tropical birds

Arini: the tribe of parrots that includes macaws and parakeets

Ava: from the Latin for “bird”

Birdie: cute vintage name, could be a nickname for Bridget or Elizabeth

Byrd: Old English, originally given as a nickname to one thought to bear a fancied resemblance to a bird

Cairina: a genus of ducks

Callum: Scottish, means “dove”

Chelidon: Greek name for a swallow

Claravis: a genus of neotropical doves

Corvus: means “crow”

Covey: a little group of birds, especially partridges

Crane: from the name of the long-legged bird

Cygnet: a baby swan

Dacelo: a kookaburra

Dove: lovely, simple bird name

Eagle: a strong name, this refers to the bird of prey

Efron: Hebrew, means “singing bird”

Evelyn: means “beautiful bird”

Falcon: another cool bird of prey name

Faulkner: means “falcon trainer”

Feather: if you want to go a bit literal

Finch: little birds found all over the world

Fowler: means “bird trapper”

Hawk: another cool bird of prey

Heron: long-legged freshwater and coastal birds  

Jay: a nickname, but also a cute bird

Jena: Sanskrit/Arabic, means “little bird”

Kanara: Hebrew for “canary”

Kestrel: a type of falcon

Kirk: from the Greek for bird

Laraline: Latin, meaning “seagull”

Lark: a playful songbird

Linette: a ‘linnet’ is a tiny bird from the finch family

Loa:  the name of a bird in the Icelandic language

Lonan: blackbird

Loriini: a tribe of Australasian parrots

Manu: Polynesian, “bird of the night”

Melidora: a hook-billed kingfisher

Merula: blackbird

Minerva: an extinct genus of owls

Nesta: a variation of Agnes

Nydia: Latin, means “nest”

Palila: Hawaiian singing forest bird

Paloma: Spanish, means “dove”

Peregrine: a type of falcon

Phoenix: from Greek myth, this bird dies and then rises from its own ashes

Raven: a large black bird, used as the gods’ messengers in mythology

Rhea: an ostrich-like bird

Robin: a pretty spring bird, also Batman’s bestie

Salvadorina: a type of duck from New Guinea

Sarika: a cuckoo bird, also means “princess”

Starling: a pretty bird with iridescent feathers

Talon: badass name referring to the claw of a bird of prey

Torio: Japanese, means “bird’s tail”

Trugon: a thick-billed ground pigeon

Vireo: a green-yellow bird, but also a medical marijuana company, so use with discretion

Weaver: a bird found in Asia and India

Whistler: an Australian songbird

Wren: the cutest little bird you ever saw, I promise

Zenaida: a species of American doves

Zipporah: Hebrew, means “bird”. Sephora is another version of this name

[girlfriendsofthegalaxy]

thoughts on corvids

i don’t know that i have many coherent thought beyond my brain lighting up and going !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! whenever i see one. this is mostly going to be bird pictures

SO smart. big weird bird that features in a lot of different mythologies, which was catnip to baby me just getting really into a) folklore & legends and b) birds. here is a line that Sings from the wiki article. “The presumed corvid relatives included currawongs, birds of paradise, whipbirds, quail-thrushes, whistlers, monarch flycatchers and drongos, shrikes, vireos, and vangas,[2] but current research favors the theory that this grouping is partly artificial.” brb either starting a band or a law firm with four members called “drongo shrike vireo and vanga” 

grew up around fish crows and florida jays and bluejays. i do have a big soft spot for bluejays and their creaky-pump-handle contact calls and their whisper songs (which is apparently the scientific term for when they just Go Off for like two full minutes making warbly sounds under their breath)

look at this dinosaur ass lookin motherfucker truly a thick billed raven

“The crested jay...traditionally placed in the family Corvidae but might belong to the helmetshrikes.” godDAMN do i love bird names!!!

this isn’t even TOUCHING all the other violently glossy blue-to-purple magpies & jays, or all the other monochrome treepies and whatnot

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

Nicator

Western Nicator by Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0 

Etymology: Conqueror

First Described By: Hartlaub & Finsch, 1870

Classification: Dinosauromorpha, Dinosauriformes, Dracohors, Dinosauria, Saurischia, Eusaurischia, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoromorpha, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostaylia, Ornithothoraces, Euornithes, Ornithuromorpha, Ornithurae, Neornithes, Neognathae, Neoaves, Inopinaves, Telluraves, Australaves, Eufalconimorphae, Psittacopasserae, Passeriformes, Eupasseres, Passeri, Euoscines, Passerides, Core Passerides, Sylviida, Sylvioidea, Nicatoridae

Referred Species: N. chloris (Western Nicator), N. gularis (Eastern Nicator), N. vireo (Yellow-Throated Nicator)

Status: Extant, Least Concern

Time and Place: Within the last 10,000 years, in the Holocene of the Quaternary 

Nicators are known from Western, Central, and Southeastern Africa 

By Haller1962, CC BY-SA 4.0 

Physical Description: The Nicators are a genus of very distinctive, mid-sized passerines from Africa, ranging from 16 to 23 centimeters in length. The smallest of these species is the Yellow-Throated Nicator, with the Eastern and Western species both being larger than the Yellow-Throated variety and relatively similar in size to each other. They are all fairly olive in color along their backs, with black wings; these wings are spotted yellow. They have long tails, which are also olive green, with yellow tips. Their bellies are white, and they have a variety of differently colored faces. Their bills are grey, medium-length, and thick - with noticeable hooks of the top beak over the lower beak. They also have green and yellow colored bums. 

Western NIcator and Eastern Nicator, by Henrick Grönvold, in the Public Domain 

Diet: The Nicators mainly eat arthropods, especially large butterflies, mantids, beetles, caterpillars, and even sometimes small vertebrates such as frogs and lizards, and even berries.

Behavior: Nicators feed usually alone, maybe sometimes in mated pairs but not often. These are very shy, secretive birds, foraging from the ground to the canopy and hiding among the leaves. They hop and run from branch to branch while looking for prey, sometimes even running through clumps of dry leaves. It occasionally flicks its wings while foraging, holding them open and drooped. They also fly silently in horizontal circuits around the base of a tree, while fanning its tail and flicking its wing - this may startle food in trunks into moving out to be see. The Nicators also will follow hoofed mammals to feed on insects they dredge up. They’ll explore tangled branches, and often pump their tails when excited about the prospect of food. 

Yellow-Throated Nicator by Kunstanstalt v. C. Böhm, in the Public Domain 

These birds make a wide variety of sounds, including far-carrying kwee-kuk-kuk-kuk notes, angry growls, and trilling songs; as well as loud whistling, churring notes, and “chok-chok-chok” calls. Interestingly enough, at least one species has been marked as mimicking other birds. They only sing in well-concealed perches in order to stay safe. None of these birds migrate, so they don’t have much of a migration call in addition to their variety of sounds. 

Yellow-Throated Nicator by Dubi Shapiro, all rights reserved 

Their breeding season varies throughout the year depending on the location where they live, with some populations starting in April, others February, others in December, others in June, others in April, others in August, others in May, and so on. In general, the peak of their breeding season is at the start of the rainy season. The birds are monogamous and are very territorial over their nests, which are flat and triangular. These nests are made of stout stems, leaves, even rootlets. They are usually placed low on the branches, usually not more than one meter high, in dense undergrowth. Usually about one to four eggs, on average just two are laid and incubated by the females. Both parents will feed the nestling young. The chicks hop among the branches after fledging, and stay with the parents (who will alarm them if there is danger approaching) for a little while after that.

Ecosystem: The Nicators live in dense evergreen, jungle, swamp, and semi-deciduous forests, as well as dense shrubbery among the savanna; they can be found in human-made habitats like logged forests, gardens, and plantations. Some are found along coastal forests and lowlands. None are found in particularly high-elevated areas. 

Eastern Nicator by Alan Manson, CC BY-SA 2.0 

Other: These birds are not threatened with extinction, and are very common throughout their ranges. They are even common in protected habitats, including national parks.

Species Differences: The Western Nicator lives in Western Africa, and it has an olive colored head with a yellow ring around its eye. The Eastern Nicator has a black stripe across its head, which is more taupe in color, and it lives along the eastern coast of Africa. The Yellow-Throated Nicator has a black head, with yellow stripes next to the eyes and - most distinctively - a yellow throat. This species lives in central Africa.

~ By Meig Dickson

Sources under the Cut 

Fishpool, L. & Tobias, J. (2019). Eastern Nicator (Nicator gularis). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

Fishpool, L. & Tobias, J. (2019). Western Nicator (Nicator chloris). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

Fishpool, L. & Tobias, J. (2019). Yellow-throated Nicator (Nicator vireo). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

Jobling, J. A. 2010. The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. Christopher Helm Publishing, A&C Black Publishers Ltd, London.

[badolmen]

@billy-hoepe @bonniebunz @softupshur, everybody else who liked/reblogged the first installment: holy heck y’all are so nice, your tags and comments made my day! Now, chapter 2 my friends!

As an investigative journalist, Miles had encountered his fair share of near death experiences. Shadowy threats, an alleyway beatdown, and being shot at had always been fair game in his line of work. He knew what it looked like right before someone fired a gun in his direction.

With a heave he pushed Billy out of the line of fire, behind a stack of blue containers. They wouldn’t protect him for long, but it was better than nothing. But Miles was off balance, arms open, asking for a bullet. 

It hit hard and true, knocking him to his knees.

The pain burned, the bullet buried deep in his shoulder, wedged between his joints. The blood spilled quickly, soaking through his thin shirt and puddling on the icy tile floor. The wind was knocked out of him, shock and adrenaline choking agonized gasps.

He looked up at Wernicke and the soldiers. Miles hoped he would die fighting, with a dying expression of anger and spite. But he was afraid. Terrified. And it showed in the flash of his eyes, shining with fresh tears of pain and panic.  

This was how he died.

But the room had gone cold. His could see his breath, steam shimmering off his blood and sweat frozen to the back of his neck. His pain was replaced with pins and needles, physical static invading every sense and thought. The Walrider.

The soldiers raised their weapons again, bullets spraying the air above Miles. He stayed low to the ground, stealing a glance to Billy. His eyes were open, but glassy, breaths shallow and short. He had stopped shivering.

The Walrider above shrieked and charged, but floated harmlessly over Miles, tearing into the soldiers. Blood drenched everything, spilling thick and heavy from the doorway as the nanite swarm ripped the soldiers and Wernicke to pieces. Miles stayed frozen to the ground, the pain in his shoulder receding to the throbbing ache of being smashed with a sledge hammer rather than fire and sulfur imbued in his flesh.

The blood spatter stopped, but the screams, though distant, continued, echoing above and around the hallway until they faded into the din of the electric lights. He sat up slowly, hands sticky with blood that wasn’t his own, chest soaked with blood that was. The camcorder was coated in the red slick, but still operable. There wasn’t much left of the men that had blocked the doorway, even their guns shredded beyond recognition.

A whimper to his right.

“Billy,” Miles breathed, scrambling over the blood stained tiles to where the smaller man cowered behind the containers, a small square of blue packaging and white tile saved from the massacre of red. His eyes were still glazed and icy, pupils too large to be seeing more than a blur as Miles inched closer.

Miles reached out a hand, but stopped himself. 

“Hey, Billy, can you hear me?” No response. With a shaky sigh, Miles crawled beside Billy, keeping pressure on the bullet hole in his shoulder, and waited. 

---

“I’m here, I’m right here Billy,” Miles said, voice weak and vision fuzzy as he felt Billy shift beside him. He blinked a few times, forcing himself to lucidity. It might have been a few minutes, or maybe hours. Time was slipping from Miles’ consciousness, hands and clothes tacky from coagulated, drying blood.

Billy gasped for air, as though he hadn’t taken a breath since the Walrider left, his skin pale and lips blue. The smaller man seemed dwarfed in Miles’ jacket, curling in on himself and nearly swallowed whole by the fabric. His eyes were shining with tears, sharpened with fear, but they softened at Miles’ voice. His lips twitched to form a word, but his voice was strangled in his throat.

“It’s okay, I’m – we’re good, we can leave this hellhole,” Miles said, dragging himself to his feet and extending a blood slicked hand to Billy. “We’re good to go now,” Billy was hesitant, but his grip was firm as Miles pulled him to his feet as well.

It was slow going, Miles weak and Billy shaking like a leaf, but they made it. The exit.

---

The sun was warm, the wind sweet. Birds – a vireo, a jay, a warbler – all sang in a discordant symphony of morning. The leaves on the trees rustled, shaking morning dew and drops of last night’s rain to soft grass and dark dirt below.

Freedom smelled like spilled gasoline and engine oil from the overturned armored trucks at the back of the asylum.

Billy’s thoughts were scattered, fragmented by bright, golden light and harsh, sharp sound. Sights and sounds that were familiar, yet so alien. Everything was louder outside of the pod, no longer muffled by liquid and glass.

Instead of only his own heartbeat and the hum of the Engine, everything made noise. The sound of Miles’ shoes as they limped through the woods, the wind rustling through the branches above, the buzz of insects, the sound of the jacket’s zipper jingling against itself – things that Billy hadn’t heard in years, stirring some frightful recognition in the pit of his stomach.

How much time had passed? What had happened? Was mom okay?

…

Mom.

He opened his mouth to speak, but still found the words gurgled and tasting of blood. Miles stopped walking, giving Billy a look of concern. His face was streaked with dry blood, eyes dark but soft, cautious but curious.

“You good there?” His voice was rough, deep, by far one of the most alien sounds Billy was getting used to, but that didn’t make it unpleasant. Billy motioned to his throat, weak whispers the only sound he could manage as he swallowed back a mouthful of blood. “I know I know,” Miles muttered, head swinging side to side, eyes distant with pain and exhaustion. “We just gotta make it to the highway. Hitchhike. Probably a trucker, keep a low profile. I know someone in Denver, they aren’t cheap, but they trust me, and they’re our best bet if we don’t want to have Murkoff on our ass-”

Billy shook his head violently, gasping for the words that were trapped in his throat.

“You, you don’t want to go to Denver? Or something?” He nodded. “Okay so you’ve got a better idea?” A single word clearly mouthed. “Mom? You want to go home to your mom?” Billy nodded, but recognized the crease in Miles’ brow, the apprehension in his eyes. An expression pleading for understanding.

Billy whimpered.

“I’m, I’m sorry Bill, we need – first, we need to not die, okay? Make sure we’ll live long enough to get you home. We gotta be safe about this, we don’t want those Murkoff fucks hurting your mom, right?” Miles gave a half smile, the bordered somewhere on nervous and genuine. “But once we’re under the radar we’ll get you back to your mom, ‘kay?”

Billy nodded, swallowing another coppery mouthful. Get safe. Then find mom.

---

The freeway was hot, asphalt burning Billy’s bare feet. Something about the smell reminded him of the Engine, flickers of phantom afterimages from the Morphogenic Engine burned into the background of his vision as he watched and waited with Miles.

They were watching where the horizon met the mountain edge in the distance, a shimmer where the sun had blurred the distinct lines of reality with its warmth, for any movement, any sign of a vehicle unassociated with Murkoff.

Miles was tired, too tired to stand. He sat in the gravel at the edge of the road, blood soaking down his arm to drip over the grey stone. The longer Billy was on his feet, mind soaking up every old sight and smell and sound, the stronger he felt. But Miles only seemed to whither, paling, shaking, and exhausted. Billy let him sleep, the hot sun drying the worst of the blood.

There was a rumble in the distance.

Billy shook Miles’ shoulder gently, the injured man blinking away sleep with wild, panicked eyes and a gasp for air. Billy stumbled back, feeling a breath of cold air across his shoulder as Miles’ frightened eyes sent a shiver of fear down his spine. 

But it passed, Miles shaking himself awake with a groan and pulling himself to his feet. There was truck headed north to Denver.

Miles stood out in the road, waving his arms. Billy felt fear prickle at the back of his neck again, the near suicidal reporter standing with his arms out as the truck thundered forward, until the brakes squeaked, and the vehicle decelerated rapidly, stopping long before it reached where Miles stood.

Miles limped to the driver’s side of the truck, the thundering engine left running. Billy did not like the memory of that sound, the engine humming, loud. Incessant. Like static, invading every corner of his mind. He could feel it. That pressure just behind his eyes, pouring coppery blood down the back of his throat. A breath of ash heaved from his lungs, the flickers of afterimages growing more intense.

The horn honked, loud, clear, and startling. Billy looked up, to Miles waving to him, to his hands. The black dust drifted away. A few deep breathes, and he walked towards the still growling truck.

“This is Marcy,” Miles said, gesturing up to the driver. The noise from the engine seemed to obscure her face, the way the heat blurred the horizon of the road, but Billy could make out her black curls and square jaw. “She’s gonna give us a ride to a nearby truck stop. She isn’t going to Denver, but there’ll be someone there who will be,” Billy nodded, barely hearing Miles’ words against the engine’s roar.

“C’mon, if ya want a ride you better get in,” Marcy said from above, voice soft but strong over the engine.

Billy followed Miles around the nose of the tractor trailer to the passenger side door, climbing up into the vehicle. The seat was wide, but just a little too small for two men to comfortably sit. Luckily, Billy was small and thin, and Miles didn’t mind having some of his personal space invaded for a relatively short trip to the truck stop.

It was somehow quieter inside the truck than outside; the engine’s roar muffled, even as the heavy vehicle picked up speed. Marcy smelled like flowery deodorant and lemons, the cab infused with the sweet, alert smell. Rosary beads clinked together, wrapped around the handle beside the door, a bobble head hula girl dancing on the dashboard.

“So, I gotta at least ask, what the hell happened to you two?” Billy, so close to Miles, could feel him tense, mangled hands curling tighter around the blood stained camcorder. “I know you said, ‘No questions asked,’ and ‘low profile’ and all, but you two are the most…” She stole a glance from the open road to her bloody, half naked, and exhausted passengers. “…Roughed up hitchhikers I’ve given rides to, and I’ve picked up some sad girls and poor kids pretty banged up, but at least they asked for hospital or police, y’all are a little more than strange.”

Miles was silent. Billy looked up at him, the dark, soft eyes closed and breath slow. Asleep, after a night in hell. Marcy gave a sigh, accepting she wouldn’t get a satisfactory answer.

“You can get some rest too, darlin’,” She said, hand reaching for the cross around her neck. “We’ll be at the truck stop in a bit, but you’ll least have till noon,”

Billy closed his eyes, head resting on Miles’ shoulder, the one that didn’t have a bullet buried in it. But he could not sleep. The flickers of the Engine were persistent, a heartbeat beneath his eyelids that flashed with every turn of the truck’s engine pistons.

He did not sleep, but he listened to the truck’s radio. Insect swarms. Overly warm temperatures for the autumn. Storms destroying crops. Economic and political predictions. Not pleasant news, but mundane. Normal. More normal than the muffled, robotic voices from Mount Massive.

It wasn’t quite sleep, eyes cracked open to stave off the flickers of a still too real nightmare, but it was rest. He hadn’t walked so much or so far in years. How many he wasn’t sure, maybe it hadn’t even been that long, but it felt like it. His feet hurt, bare and covered with dirt and pricked by gravel and spruce needles, but sitting there, listening to the radio, Marcy’s quiet humming, and Miles’ ragged breathing, he felt safer than he had in far too long.

Get safe. Go home. Go back to mom. Mom.

She would be so happy to see him again.

[easo-burrito]

Moving to Texas for the BCVI Jon was the furthest west I had been but for the birds we go further. Some of us took a trip out to rural SE Arizona (avoiding people) and did some camping among the amazing sky islands of Arizona moving through the various canyons and mountain ranges like the Chiricahua’s, Huachuca’s, and Santa Rita’s (making a special trip to visit the Saguaro National Park). Seeing tons of species (about 189 including 12 different species of hummingbirds)! There’s absolutely too much to do in Arizona for two weeks so I know for certain I’ll be back sooner rather than later. Avian highlights of the trip included; Rufous Capped Warbler, Plain-Capped Starthroat, White-eared Hummingbird, Five-Stripped Sparrow, Yellow-Green Vireo, Elegant Trogon, Botteri’s Sparrow, Thick-Billed Kingbird, and Phainopepla just to name a few! (at Arizona) https://www.instagram.com/p/CDH1FPIpD2s/?igshid=ed1rc9ognjcq

[lies]

anonsally replied to your photo “A few weeks ago the hills above Carpinteria, the coastal town I live...”

Good luck. I hope you'll see something... Also, that's a gorgeous photo.

Thank you! And thank you! That’s a tree that I’m pretty sure isn’t there anymore. I took that photo on the scouting trip that produced the eBird list below, two weeks before the fire. Supposedly the riparian corridor in the base of Romero Canyon only has “moderate” damage, with the understory burned but a lot of the trees only slightly scorched and hopefully surviving. But the hillside above, where this fire road runs... Well. I haven’t been back there yet. But like I said; pretty sure this tree is gone.

Romero Canyon, Santa Barbara, California, US Dec 1, 2017 8:01 AM - 10:03 AM Protocol: Traveling 1.709 mile(s) Comments:     Looked for, but failed to find, Rufous-crowned Sparrow. Hiked the canyon, then up the Old Romero Canyon dirt road a half mile or so up the hill and back down. 25 species (+2 other taxa)

California Quail  2 Red-tailed Hawk  1 Band-tailed Pigeon  16 hummingbird sp.  1 Northern Flicker  2 Black Phoebe  1 Hutton's Vireo  2 Steller's Jay  1 California Scrub-Jay  3 Oak Titmouse  2 Bushtit  9 Canyon Wren  2     Great views foraging in an oak limb. Bewick's Wren  1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet  3 Wrentit  5 Hermit Thrush  4 California Thrasher  1 Orange-crowned Warbler  1 Yellow-rumped Warbler  8 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's)  2 Fox Sparrow  2     Believe they were Thick-billed, but I didn’t see them long enough to confirm that. Dark-eyed Junco  1 California Towhee  4 Spotted Towhee  2 House Finch  6 Purple Finch  1     Female Lesser Goldfinch  2

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S40842385

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)

[proton-wobbler]

Thick-billed Vireo (Denny Swaby)

[Image ID: a songbird perched in a leafy bush. there is a dark eye set on a gray face, with a yellow patch in front of the eye. the throat and belly are a messy gray-yellow. the bill is large on the birds face, and its the same blue-gray color as its feet. end ID]

[proton-wobbler]

Thick-billed Vireo

[image ID: a fairly drab songbird. most of the bird is gray or beige, though the wings have two bright white wing-bars, and there is a bright yellow patch of feathers on the lores- the area between the bill and eye. the eye is dark and fairly large. the bill and feet are blue. end ID]

Song:

Scientific Name: Vireo crassirostris

IUCN Rating: Least Concern

Habitat & Location: a resident of the West Indies who breeds in tropical thickets

Fun Fact: a subspecies known as the Providencia Vireo is sometimes referred to as its own species

[image ID: a map showing the Caribbean islands, zoomed in on the Greater Antilles and the Bahama islands north of them. the Bahamas are colored purple to denote year-round residence, while a small central section of Cuba is colored blue to show non-breeding residence. end ID]

Image Sources: bird (Melissa James); map (birds of the world)

[proton-wobbler]

Thick-billed Vireo (Elliott Ress)

[Image ID: a songbird perched in a leafy bush. there is a dark eye set on a gray face, with a yellow patch in front of the eye. the belly is dull yellow, with a bit of gray overtone. the bill is quite large set on the birds face, and its the same blue-gray as its feet. end ID]

[proton-wobbler]

Thick-billed Vireo (Oliver Burrus)

[Image ID: a songbird perched in a bush. there is a dark eye set on a gray face, with a yellow patch in front of the eye. the large bill is dark gray and slightly open, as if singing. the throat and belly are gray-cream. there are two white wingbars. end ID]

[proton-wobbler]

Cuban Vireo (Lee Dunn)

[Image ID: a dull-colored songbird perched on a thick branch with its mouth open, singing. it has a white eye-ring set on a gray face and has a yellow-gray belly and throat. its eye is bright brown. its bill is pink-gray and its feet are blue. end ID]

[proton-wobbler]

Choco Vireo (Benny Jacobs-Schwartz)

[Image ID: a dull-colored songbird perched on a thick, mossy branch. It has a yellowish chest. It has a gray-blue bill and legs. It's eye is dark with a tan eyebrow. end ID]

[proton-wobbler]

Blue Mountain Vireo (Matthew Grube)

[Image ID: a small songbird with a heavy body. it has a gray head, brown eye, and yellow body. its got a thick, dark blue bill and is posed in a portrait-type position, facing the right. end ID]

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

I highly recommend having this survey open on your browser, doing research, and filling it out slowly. Because, birds. 

Palaeognaths

The first major division of modern birds (all the rest are Neognaths). Includes the Moa, Elephant Birds, Tinamous, Emus, Rheas, and Lithornithids. Casuarias and Struthio are ineligible, so don’t write in any Cassowaries or Ostriches. 

Highlights include the Kiwi, an adorable small with a long snoot; Aepyornis, the largest Neornithean known; the Emu, who has one of the funniest ways of running; and Lithornis, an extinct flying member of the group. 

Galloanserans 

The earliest derived group of Neognaths. Includes Gastornis & the very similar Dromornithids, Geese, Screamers, Ducks, Swans, Curassows, Guans, Megapodes, Partridges, Quails, Junglefowl, and Pheasants. Genera Pavo and Gallus are ineligible, so don’t write in any peafowl or the four junglefowl under Gallus (which includes the chicken). 

Highlights include Gastornis, which was actually a large herbivore rather than a super predator as thought; Vegavis, one of the earliest well-known Neornithes, being from the Cretaceous; Hooded Merganser, the duck with the very large crest that is quite impressive; and the Blue-billed Curassow, confirmed Friend and Curly Man. 

Caprimulgiformes & Opisthocomiformes

These two groups aren’t actually closely related, I just had to stick Opisthocomiformes somewhere. Caprimulgiformes include Oilbirds, Owlet-Nightjars, Frogmouths, Nighthawks, and Nightjars. Opisthocomiformes include Hoatzin. Genera Nyctibius and Opisthocomus are ineligible, so no potoos or the only modern Hoatzin. 

Highlights include the Satanic Nightjar, which looks exactly like you’d expect; the Tawny Frogmouth, who almost looks like a potoo if you squint; the Oilbird, which has some of the weirdest and spookiest eyes; and Hoazinoides, an extinct Hoatzin with feet like that of an owl. 

Apodiformes

Swifts, Treeswifts, and Hummingbirds. Nothing is ineligible. All are precious.

Highlights include the Bee Hummingbird, the smallest dinosaur known to science; the Common Swift, which looks like a boomerang; Eocypselus, an early relative of all these groups; and anything of the genera Sappho and Lesbia, which are the best genus names I’ve ever heard of.

Columbaves

Cuckoos, Turacos, Bustards, Pigeons, Doves, Sandgrouse, and Mesites. Genus Columba is ineligible, so don’t write in any of the “typical pigeons.” 

Highlights include the Dodo, which is not as dumb as we were lead to believe; the Bare-Faced Go-Away Bird, which represents Me at All Times; the Nicobar Pigeon, which has beautiful rainbow plumage; and the Kori Bustard, which has a really elegant neck and posture IMO. 

Gruiformes

Cranes, Crakes, Rails, Limpkin, Trumpeters, Flufftails, Finfoots, and Sungrebes. Nothing is ineligible. 

Highlights include the Whooping Crane, an endangered species with a distinctive call; the White-Spotted Flufftail, who has adorable spots on its butt; the Red-Legged Crake, which is red in lots of places besides its legs; and the Sungrebe, which has a nice blue cap on its head. 

Mirandornithes & Charadriiformes

Flamingos, Grebes, Waders, Snipes, Sandpipers, Jacanas, Wanderers, Gulls, Skimmers, Terns, Puffins, Skuas, Plovers, Buttonquails, Thick-Knees, Sheathbills, Ibisbills, Avocets, Oystercatchers, and Lapwings. Nothing is ineligible. 

Highlights include the Great Auk, an extinct large puffin that we as humans don’t deserve; the Ring-Billed Gull, whom I have a personal vendetta against; the Dovekie, a smol, adorable friend; and the Sanderling, one of the inspirations behind Pixar’s Piper. 

Ardeae

Tropicbirds, Kagu, Sunbittern, Loons, Albatross, Petrels, Storkss, Boobies, Cormorants, Pelicans, Hamerkop, Ibises, Spoonbills, Herons, Egrets, and Penguins. The genus Balaeniceps is ineligible, so don’t write in the Shoebill. 

Highlights include the Little Penguin, the smol adorable penguin of smol adorableness; the Least Bittern, who is indeed the Least Bittern; the Common Loon, against whom my partner Max (@plokool) has a personal vendetta; and the Emperor Penguin, which is the Pinnacle of Dinosaurian Evolution according to Thomas Holtz (well, okay, he said penguins in general were, but this is the emperor penguin, so...) 

Accipitrimorphs 

Vultures (both Old and New world), Ospreys, Hawks, Eagles, Kites. Genera Sagittarius and Gypaetus are ineligible, so don’t write in the Secretary Bird, or the Bearded Vulture. No, do not write in the Bearded Vulture, nor Lammergeier, nor Ossifrage. You will have wasted your vote. Do not do the thing. It doesn’t count. 

Highlights include Haast’s Eagle, an eagle so large it hunted the Moa; the Harpy Eagle, which honestly when you see it if you aren’t convinced birds are dinosaurs there’s nothing more I can do; the Turkey Vulture, or as I like to call it, the Bare-Faced Come-Hither Bird; and the Red-Tailed Hawk, aka, that sound you hear when people try to ignore that Bald Eagles are actually huge dorks. 

Strigiformes

Owls. Genus Tyto is ineligible, which is basically all barn owls and most of their close relatives, so just, don’t write that in. 

Highlights include Palaeoglaux, one of the earliest derived forms and may have been diurnal; the Burrowing Owl, who likes to dig them holes; the Snowy Owl, aka Hedwig; and the Fearful Owl, who looks exactly like what you’d expect. 

Coraciimorphs

Mousebirds, Cuckoo Roller, Trogons, Hornbills, Hoopoes, Rollers, Kingfishers, Woodpeckers, Toucans. Genus Dacelo is ineligible, which means no Kookaburras, none, do not write one in. 

Highlights include Septencoracias, aka a Friend and Boy; the Hoopoe, aka the Most Jewish bird; the Resplendent Quetzal, which truly is magnificently colored; and the Keel-Billed Toucan, who just really loves fruit okay?

Falconiformes & Cariamiformes

Serimas, Terror Birds, Bathornithids, Caracaras, and Falcons. Genus Titanis is ineligible, as is Falco peregrinus, the peregrine falcon. Since most falcons are under Falco, the rest of the genus is eligible. 

Highlights Include Phorusrhacos, one of the most Quintessential Terror Birds; the Red-Legged Seriema, who is just a very angry bird; the Pygmy Falcon, who is a Smol Ball of FURY; and the Northern Crested Caracara, who has distinctive purple-pinkish skin on its face. 

Parrots

... Parrots. The Kakapo, genus Strigops, is ineligible. 

Highlights include the Cockatiel, a common pet and soft friend; the African Grey Parrot, one of the smartest species of dinosaurs; Spix’s Macaw, a beautiful blue parrot on the brink of extinction; and the Mulga Parrot, a parrot with feathers that almost look like clay in certain lighting. 

Passerines

Perching birds. The vast majority of birds. Most birds are in this group. I am so sorry. Includes, but is not limited to, Pittas, Broadbills, Cotingas, Sharpbills, Flycatchers, Antthrushes, Ovenbirds, Lyrebirds, Scrub-birds, Bowerbirds, Honeyeaters, Fairywrens, Whistlers, Orioles, Vireos, Birds of Paradise, Jays, Satinbirds, Wattlebirds, Rockfowl, Tits, Chickadees, Larks, Nicators, Wren-Babblers, Swallows, Warblers, Babblers, Waxwings, Treecreepers, Thrushes, Oxpeckers, Mockingbirds, Sugarbirds, Sunbirds, Sparrows, Finches, Buntings, Cardinals, Whistlers, Woodshrikes. 

The genus Corvus is ineligible, which is a good portion of crows and ravens, so don’t write them in. There are so many passerines to choose from, you can pick another one. 

It’s, nearly impossible to pick four highlights, but here we go. Highlights include the Blue Jay, one of the most famous and beautiful perching birds; the Superb Bird of Paradise, who has one of the most spectacular mating dances of birds; the Great Tit, who truly is an amazing soft sphere of birb; and the House Sparrow, a feature of almost every major city and one of the dinosaurs often used to define the clade.

Good luck. Have fun. Voting will close February 24 (possibly earlier if we get enough votes in).