Bird & Turtle Watching

This is Montserrat’s national bird which is critically endangered. Adult males are a black and yellow combination. Females and young males are olive green. Orioles are slim, long-tailed with a noticeable silvery-white tinge to the lower back. Found in the Centre Hills mostly in mesic forest and at high altitude in elfin forest, they build their nest under the leaf of the Heliconia, the island’s National Flower.

This is a medium-sized, long-tailed bird with a rich brown plumage. The long black bill is slightly down-curved and the eye is bright gold. The underparts are uniform buff brown. This bird is generally found in the Centre Hills forest and is a relative of the Thrashers, but it is solitary, quiet and shy.

This bird has a rich brown back, wings, neck and crown. The legs and bill are bright yellow and the bird has a very prominent circle of bare skin around the eyes. The breast and belly have a distinctive bold scaly pattern, made by feathers with brown edges and white centres. Sometimes confused with the Scaly-Breasted or Pearly-Eyed Thrashers, it makes a strange and far-crying whooping song.

This plump bird has a white streak below the eye. The neck and upper back are iridescent dark green and purple. The back and wings are brown and the upper parts are pink-buff. The eye and beak are red, with a pale bill-tip. This bird is usually seen on the forest floor in small patches in the Woodlands area, as well as in the Centre Hills Forest.

A small fast-moving hummingbird which looks like metallic green from a distance. Up close it has a metallic blue patch at the base of its green breast and a darker belly and tail. Its long bill is slightly down-curved but less so than in the Purple-Throated Carib. This is an active and restless bird.

The largest of the three species found in Montserrat, this hummingbird is mostly black with bright green wings and tail, and an iridescent purple throat. In the light, its throat is astonishingly bright but in the shade, it often appears uniformly very dark. The bill is long and down-curved. This bird prefers the forest but is occasionally seen in open areas and woodland patches in the lowlands.

This is a tiny bird, dark green in colour with a short straight bill. Plumage is uniform but in the right light appears iridescent. The crest on the crown is striking when seen. Females are duller in colour than males, with less obvious crests, and greyish underparts. It is found in forests but also around the edges of woodland, in gardens and in farmland.

This is a bird with a uniform brown on its back, head, wings and upper tail. Its eye is bright yellow and the bill is dark. The underparts are scaly-brown with a whitish pattern. It has a very distinctive single note call. Although primarily a forest bird, it is fairly common throughout Montserrat in gardens, farms and forests.

This highly vocal, sometimes secretive bird is distinguished by its brown plumage and heavy streaking below. It has a large, pale bill and has varied calls, including high thin whistles, brief chirps, and harsh or guttural scolds.

This is a small and nondescript bird, it is mostly olive grey, with a paler under belly. It has two whitish wing bars and an inconspicuous white crest on the top of the head. It is primarily a bird of the dry and semi-dry forest in the lower areas particularly in more open sunny patches, and on the edges of clearings. This bird is a fly-catcher and it gives a penetrating single whistle and has a cheery song phrase – “chwee chee chu chu”

This is a large slate-grey coloured mountain pigeon with a scaly, purple-red patch on the side of the neck, hence its name. It has a distinctive call with the last three syllables sounding like “Who are you?”

This is a small to medium-sized bright yellow bird with black dots. The male has a more striking coloration. This bird favors dry forest and makes a sweet whistling call. It constructs a basket nest of grass which it attaches to the Acacia plant.