Dollarbird

Description:

Not a very big bird. Head and body are brown and I think the wings are black or possibly dark brown. The beak appears to be orange and this little guy has dark eyes - personal observation. BirdLife description: It has mostly dark brown upperparts, washed heavily with blue-green on the back and wing coverts. The breast is brown, while the belly and undertail coverts are light, and the throat and undertail glossed with bright blue. The flight feathers of the wing and tail are dark blue. The short, thick-set bill is orange-red, tipped with black. In flight, the pale blue coin-shaped patches towards the tips of its wings, that gave the bird its name, are clearly visible. Both sexes are similar, although the female is slightly duller. Young Dollarbirds are duller than the adults and lack the bright blue gloss on the throat. The bill and feet are brownish in colour instead of red.

Habitat:

Perched in a tree on the bank of the wetlands. Spends the Australian autumn and winter (March/April-September) in New Guinea. Comes for a visit to Northern and Eastern Australia around September for breeding.

Notes:

Thank you Daniele for identifying this bird! After reading about it I remembered I had seen the white "dollar" patches under the wings when it had been in flight. Daniele's reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dollarbird My first reference: The Michael Morcombe eGuide to Australian Birds, Mobile App. My second reference: http://birdlife.org.au/bird-profile/doll...