The Scarlet Honeycreeper (Drepanis coccinea orVestiaria coccinea) is a small bird in the hummingbird family. It is also known as the I’iwi. It was previously categorized as Vestiaria coccinea, but taxonomists changed the classification to Drepanis coccineain 2015.
The Scarlet Honeycreeper is mostly scarlet with black wings and a black tail. It has a long, decurved, pinkish beak.
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The American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) is a large wetland wading bird. It is also known as the Caribbean Flamingo.
The American Flamingo has reddish-pink feathers. Its wing coverts are red, and the primary and secondary flight feathers are black. Its beak is pink and white with a black tip. Its long legs are pink, and it usually stands on one leg. It has a long, curved S-shaped neck.
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The Eclectus Parrot (Eclectus roratus) is medium-sized bird.
The Eclectus Parrot male and female look very different. The male is bright green and the female is mostly bright red. The male is bright green with blue primary feathers and red sides. Its short tail is edged with a narrow band of creamy-yellow, but is mainly green. The female is bright red with a darker colour on her back and wings. Her underwing coverts are purple. Her short tail is edged with yellow-orange above and orange below. The male has an orange and black beak: orange on the upper mandible and black on the lower mandible. The female has an all-black beak. Both have yellow to orange eyes.
The Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres) is a small wading bird – a wader – that lives in wetlands. It is in the Scolopacidae family of Sandpipers.
The Ruddy Turnstone varies in colours of brown with a pattern of black and white. Its head is mainly white with black streaks on its crown, with a black pattern on its face. It has a slightly upturned wedge-shaped dark beak. Its chest is mainly black with white patches on the side, and white underparts. Its rump and tail have dark bands. Its legs are bright orange. The female is duller in colour than the male, with a browner head that has more streaks.
The Scarlet Ibis (Eudocimus ruber) is a large wetlands bird. It is a wader and a shore or coastal bird. It is the only red coastal bird in the world.
The Scarlet Ibis is scarlet red. Its wingtips often have black or dark blue markings. It has a long downward-curved red beak, which is darker towards the tip. Its feet are red. Its neck and legs are long, and they are out-stretched when they fly.
What is the difference between the Asian Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos daphanea), the Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca), and the Steppe Eagle (Aquila nipalensis)?
The Asian Golden Eagle, the Eastern Imperial Eagle, and the Steppe Eagle are all large birds of prey, raptors, and accipiters from the Northern Hemisphere.
The Asian Golden Eagle, the Eastern Imperial Eagle, and the Steppe Eagle all have a dark-grey or black-tipped sharply down-turned beak with a yellow cere (the hard substance at the top of the beak).
The difference between them is mainly due to size, colour, and flight.
The Steppe Eagle (Aquila nipalensis) is a large bird of prey, a raptor, and accipiter (the family of eagles).
The Steppe Eagle is brown with blackish flight feathers and a blackish tail. It has banded white and brown flight feathers. It has brown eyes, and a black sharply down-turned beak with a yellow cere.
The Andean Condor (Vultur gryphus) is a large South American bird in the Vulture family. It is a raptor and bird of prey.
The Andean Condor is black with a white ruff (collar) around its neck. Its face and neck are pinkish-red and nearly bald. Females have a bald blackish-red head and neck. It has a flattened head. Males have a dark carbuncle or comb on their head. It has white feathers on its wings. Its pale cream beak is strong with a slightly downward-curved hook, and its eyes are orange-brown. It has long sharp talons on its feet to grip its prey.
The Silvery-Cheeked Hornbill (Bycanistes brevis) is a large African bird with a huge beak.
The Silvery-Cheeked Hornbill has iridescent black feathers with a silvery-grey head, and silvery spots on its cheeks. It has a white rump, white lower back, and white tips on its tail feathers. It has a large cream-coloured casque (bony growth) on its beak. It has dark eyes, and females have red skin around their eyes.
What is the difference between the African hornbills: Grey Hornbill, Red-Billed Hornbill, and Von der Decken’s Hornbill?
The Grey Hornbill (Tockus nasutus), the Red-Billed Hornbill (Tockus erythrorhynchus), and the Von der Decken’s Hornbill (Tockus deckeni) are all large African birds with a large downward curved beak.
The Grey Hornbill and the Red-Billed Hornbill are grey-brown, with black regions, whereas the Von der Decken’s Hornbill is black and white.
The male Grey Hornbill has a black beak with a cream patch on its maxilla (upper beak), and narrow pale lines on its mandible (bottom beak). The female Grey Hornbill has a large black beak with a dark red beak tip, with half of the maxilla (upper beak) a cream-yellow colour.
The Red-Billed Hornbill has an all-red beak. The male Von der Decken’s Hornbill has a large downward curved two-toned red and ivory-cream beak with a black tip. The female Von der Decken’s Hornbill has a large all-black beak.
The Von der Decken’s Hornbill (Tockus deckeni) is a large big-beaked African bird.
The Von der Decken’s Hornbill has a black and white body. Its wings and upper tail feathers are black, and it nape, chest, belly, and under tail feathers are white. It has a black patch around its eyes. It has small red cheek patches. The male has a large downward curved two-toned red and ivory-cream beak with a black tip. The female has a large all-black beak.
The African Grey Hornbill (Tockus nasutus) is a large big-beaked African bird.
The African Grey Hornbill has a grey-brown body with a long white stripe from its eye to the back of its neck (nape), and another white stripe down the centre of its back. It has brown wings edged in white. Its throat and chest are pale grey-brown, and its belly is white.
The male has a large downward curved black beak with a cream patch on its maxilla (upper beak), and narrow pale lines on its mandible (bottom beak). The female has a large black beak with a dark red beak tip, and half of the maxilla (upper beak) is a cream-yellow colour.
The Dalmatian Pelican (Pelecanus crispus) is a large freshwater waterbird.
The Dalmatian Pelican has mainly silvery-white feathers on its body, with curly feathers on the back of its head. It has a large orange-red lower mandible (jaw) and a yellow upper mandible, with a large pouch. It has yellow to purple-blue eye-rings.
The Spot-Billed Pelican (Pelecanus philippensis) is a large freshwater waterbird. It is also called the Grey Pelican.
The Spot-Billed Pelican is mainly white, with a grey crest and grey back of neck. It has a brownish tail. The feathers on the back of its neck are curly. Its pouch is pinkish-purple with large pale spots. It is also spotted on the sides of its upper mandible (jaw). It has a yellow-orange tip on its beak. It looks similar to the Dalmatian Pelican.
The Holub’s Golden Weaver (Plocus xanthops) is an African bird, which is also called the African Golden Weaver.
The Holub’s Golden Weaver is greenish-golden-yellow with pale-yellow eyes and a large black beak. Its upperparts and tail are greenish-yellow to golden-olive. The male has orange on its throat and upper chest.
The Razorfish (Aeoliscus strigatus) is a small reef marine (saltwater) fish. It always swims in a vertical (head down) position.
The Razorfish is a long, thin fish, with reduced, transparent fins. The ridge on its back is covered with protective bony plates, which also cover its tail, ending with a sharp spine. Its mouth is a sharp beak. It has a black-brown band, or stripe, along the length of its body, which also goes across its eyes. The colour of its body can vary, depending upon its habitat, changing colour to camouflage itself. However, mostly it is silver.
The Australian Pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus) is a large, water bird, living in wetlands.
The Australian Pelican is mostly white, with black wings. It has a white panel on the upper wing and a white V-shape on its back. It has a very large pale-pink beak with a pale-pink pouch. Its eye-ring is pale-yellow. Its eye-ring turns yellow-orange, and the beak changes colour to blue, pink, or red, in the breeding season. Its beak has a small hook at the tip. Its eyes are brown and yellow and its feet are blue-grey, with four webbed toes.
The White-Throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis fusca)is an Asian bird, specifically from west India and Sri Lanka. Other species are widespread in Asia, from Turkey to the Philippines.
The White-Throated Kingfisher has a bright blue back, wings, and tail. Its head, shoulders, sides, and lower belly are chestnut-coloured. Its throat and chest are white. It has a very large bright red beak and bright red legs. It has short, rounded wings.
The Pied Currawong (Strepera graculina) is a medium-sized Australian bird. It looks like a crow, but it is only distantly related to crows and ravens.
The Pied Currawong is black with white bars on its wings and tail. It has booted feet (feathers on its legs). It has a hooked tip on its long, sharply-pointed beak. It has bright yellow eyes.
The Golden Palm Weaver (Ploceus bojeri) is a small Africa bird. It is in the Ploceidae family.
The Golden Palm Weaver is bright yellow with pale light-brown streaks on its wings. It has a bright golden face with a thick short black beak. Its eyes are dark and its legs are pink.