Heard but seldom seen
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’re 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. In that case it is purely up to luck and chance for the human observer to cross paths with this specie...