Faraaz Abdool asks us to sharpen our other senses as we walk in the rainforest. When we least expect it, we may be lucky to hear, and maybe see, these birds that are good at hiding.
Wherever we are on the planet, the probability of seeing a bird is always high. On an island as compact as Tobago, it is impossible to escape them! Yet, there are several species that exist alongside those we are accustomed to that are rarely encountered. This is most apparent in wild areas such as the Main Ridge Forest Reserve. Here, there is ample space, a network of undulating hills covered in untamed forest for all forms of feathered friends to proliferate.
Within a habitat such as this, a variety of factors can contribute to the bird being infrequently seen. Perhaps it feeds on a low-density food and thus requires considerable territory from which it can subsist.
[caption id="attachment_1035314" align="alignnone" width="1024"] This Stripe-breasted Spinetail stands out against the green of the foliage. - Faraaz Abdool[/caption]
In that case it is purely up to luck and chance for the human observer to cross paths with this species.
They can also typically be solitary and only during certain periods of the year – such as during the breeding or nesting season – they may be seen in pairs. Others are cryptic in coloration and designed to seamlessly blend in with their surroundings. Vegetation also plays an important role in keeping some species hidden.
In the eyes of a human observer or a potential predator, many birds are snack-sized and prudently opt to remain out of view. Even very vocal species may be hard-pressed to leave the comfort and safety of a woody bramble. The melodious song of the Rufous-breasted Wren, for instance, is one of the most common features of the soundscape of the Main Ridge Forest Reserve yet only the most fortuitous of circumstances allows us to behold its striking black-and-white checkered face and brilliant rufescent breast.
[caption id="attachment_1035313" align="alignnone" width="1024"] A Rufous-breasted Wren makes a brief appearance. - Faraaz Abdool[/caption]
Less melodic but just as furtive is the Plain Antvireo. Most often found in pairs, this species exhibits sexual dimorphism – meaning that males and females differ in coloration.
Like the Rufous-breasted Wren, it frequently vocalises as it forages. Its song is a curious sounding, descending series of staccato notes, the pattern of which might mirror that of a bouncing ball gradually coming to rest.
Despite its superficially drab appearance, the Grey-throated Leaftosser’s strident vocalisation of two to four cheerful, ascending notes always injects a sense of excitement. Found across an exceptionally wide range, mostly in dense forest on the foothills of the Andes in South America, this bird is most often encountered singly. As its name implies, the Grey-throated Leaftosser does in fact toss leaves. This is not a frivolous habit, but its main technique to find food hidden within the leaf litter. All manners of spiders, centipedes,
