Measuring between 18 – 20 inches long, Pied Crows are found throughout Africa, from Senegal to Sudan. They reside in most environments except for rainforests and very hot desert regions. They have a hefty, robust bill that allows them to eat various foods from small vertebrates to fruit, and carrion. Because of its expansive diet, Pied Crow’s are an important member of the environmental clean-up crew as they consume carrion and help stop the spread of diseases (just like vultures!). They also keep prey populations stable as well as contribute to the distribution of seeds.  

Crows are an extremely smart species and have been observed using tools to get food – like dropping stones on an egg to crack the shell open. 

Pied Crows look like American Crows, except Pied Crows wear stylish white “sweater vests!”

Green Woodhoopoes are very social and extremely curious about their environment – known to probe their long, curved, bright red bill into cracks and crevices in search of insects. They use their bill to pry apart bark and buds, gaining access to the food within. 

Woodhoopoes all have striking iridescent green, blue, and purple plumage, long curved bills, and long tailfeathers. When they fly, they have two or three bright white stripes on their wings. 

In total, there are four species of Woodpoes, and an additional four species of closely-related Scimtarbills, all in the “Phoeniculidae” family.

Speckled Mousebirds are very social, often living in flocks of twenty or more birds. They are among the few folivorous bird species specializing in eating leaves. When food is scarce, or in cooler weather, mousebirds often huddle in large groups and can reduce their energy requirement by going into a state of inactivity known as torpor.

Scientists have described the six extant species of mousebirds, including the Speckled, as “living fossils” due to their lineage of more than two dozen species from the end of the Cretaceous (66 million years ago)  to the end of the Miocene era (5 million years ago).

A very common dabbling duck of the Nearctic region, and introduced elsewhere where it is sometimes considered an invasive pest, the Mallard occurs on almost any body of shallow water, but especially those with submerged or floating vegetation. In the breeding season the Mallard eats mostly animal foods such as aquatic insect larvae and snails, but at other times of year they favor seeds, aquatic vegetation, and cereal crops. The Mallard usually nests near water but on the ground  in upland areas, with the nest hidden under overhanging vegetation.

Weighing just over half a pound, the African Pygmy-Goose is the smallest species of waterfowl in the world! This goose inhabits swamps, marshes, shallow freshwater lakes, and slow-flowing rivers in Africa which have abundant aquatic vegetation. Here it feeds primarily on seeds, leaves, and flowers of various aquatic plants, and nests in a variety of situations. The African Pygmy-Goose is not globally threatened, but populations are adversely affected by introduced fish, like tilapia, and by the invasive aquatic water hyacinth, which tends to take over waterways.

A striking black and white vulture of Sub-Saharan Africa, the Palm-nut Vulture is found along the edges of tropical forests, large rivers, lakes, and seashores, especially where oil palms abound. Unlike other vultures, the Palm-nut Vulture feeds only occasionally on smaller carrion – and rarely at large animal carcasses – and instead specializes its feeding on the fleshy fruit and husks of the oil palm, and on the palm-fruits of Raffia palm. These fruits make up more than 60% of an adult bird’s diet and more than 90% of a juvenile bird’s diet. Unlike the situation with many vultures in the Old World, the Palm-nut Vulture’s population is stable or even increasing.

The Critically Endangered Hooded Vulture is a rather small, brown vulture, native to Sub-Saharan Africa. This species mainly occupies open woodland and savanna, but also forest edge, where if feeds on carrion and human food scraps. Unlike other vultures which mostly construct their nests on cliffs or buildings, the Hooded Vulture makes a stick nest deep within the foliage of a tree. Being smaller than the other African vultures, Hooded Vultures can rise on warm thermal air currents more quickly and so is often the first one to sight a carcass.  Vultures can remain in the air for hours, soaring gracefully with their long, broad wings on the thermals. This vulture is Critically Endangered as the result of the widespread loss of nesting trees, hunting of the vultures for food or medicine, poisoning at carcasses, and avian influenza.

A beautiful multicolored bird with flashy white cheeks, the White-cheeked Turaco is native to Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea, where they inhabit higher elevation Podocarpus and juniper forests, as well as tall gallery trees and thick bush along watercourses at lower elevations. Here the turaco favors the fruits and berries of Podocarpus trees and junipers.

The Bearded Barbet derives its name from the distinctive bristles that sit at the base of its bill, which both males and females possess. This handsome bird, with bright red underbelly and glossy black feathers on its back, is native to the tropical habitats of western Africa. Bearded Barbets are often found in groups, moving from one fruiting tree to another and clipping fruits with their powerful bills. The Bearded Barbet is not globally threatened.

African Penguins are native to the southwestern coast of Africa, and are one of the 18 species of penguins found throughout the Southern Hemisphere. They are also among the smallest penguins, standing about 18 inches tall and weighing 6 to 10 pounds. They are a temperate species comfortable in a wide range of temperatures, making them well-suited for life in Penguin Point at the National Aviary. African Penguins can’t fly, but they are extremely agile swimmers. They use their wings like paddles and their webbed feet like flippers to propel themselves through the water at speeds of up to 15 miles per hour! Sadly, this species faces many challenges, like overfishing and human encroachment on nesting grounds, and could be functionally extinct in the wild by 2035.

The Taveta Golden Weaver occurs in East African in Kenya and Tanzania. They are found in swampy lowland areas during the breeding season. Outside of the breeding season, they are found in adjacent dry bush country. They build impressive spherical nests hanging over water. The intricately weaving strips of reed leaf blades that make up their ovoid-shaped nests are hung from bulrushes or from overhanging trees. While the Taveta Golden Weaver is very localized, it occurs in large numbers, and is not globally threatened.

Superb Starlings are dark iridescent blue on the back of their head and chest, a black face that sets off their bright white eyes, metallic blue-green back and wings, and a dark orange belly bounded by bright white under the tail and in a band across the breast. The Superb Starling occurs in open woodland, including very arid country, as well as cultivated areas and gardens around human habitations of East Africa. This starling forages mostly on the ground where its diet consists mostly of insects, but it will also eat berries, small fruits, and human food scraps from around settlements and picnic sites. This species practices cooperative breeding, with helpers assisting in nest-building and feeding young. The helpers are most often males from a previous brood. The Superb Starling is not considered threatened.