“Shining mountaineer” Himalayan monals are the national bird of Nepal and extends from E Afghanistan through the Himalayas in Pakistan and India, Nepal, S Tibet, and Bhutan. (Mudassar Afaque Ahmed)

 

“Little yellow fruit-eater” Oriental white-eyes prefer the open woodland of tropical Asia from the Indian Subcontinent to SE Asia, all the way to Indonesia and Malaysia. (Prasanna AV)

 

Fork-tailed sunbirds prefer the subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests of China, Hong Kong, Laos and Vietnam. (Menxiu Tong / China Wild Tour)

 

“Little runner” Indian coursers are resident to mainland S Asia with the main population between the Ganges and Indus river systems. (Prasanna AV)

 

Koklass pheasants have a restricted distribution in the high altitude forests of Afghanistan to central Nepal, and NE Tibet to N and E China. (Menxiu Tong / China Wild Tour)

 

Lilac-breasted rollers are widely distributed in the open woodland and savanna of sub-Saharan Africa and the S Arabian Peninsula. Photographed here in the Masai Mara (Kenya). (Ram Shankar‎)

 

“Laughing forester” Striated laughing thrushes prefer the subtropical or tropical moist lowland and moist montane forests of Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Tibet and Nepal. (Pranesh Kodancha)

 

Snowy sheathbills are the only land birds in Antarctica, the Scotia Arc, the South Orkneys, and S Georgia. (Nina Stavlund)

 

“Uncut pelican” Dalmatian pelicans are distributed in swamps and shallow lakes of SE Europe, India and China. (Lennart Hessel)

 

“Master excavator” Black-collared barbets are powerful cavity-nesting found in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. (John Vosloo)

 

Rufous treepies have a loud musical call that identifies them and are indigenous to the Indian Subcontinent and nearby SE Asia. (Deepansh Mishra)

 

“Southern mariner” Blue-eyed shags are a group of closely related cormorant species found around the colder parts of the S Hemisphere and are endemic to islands near S South America, Antarctica and New Zealand. (Douglas Gould)

 

“Arctic wader” Purple sandpipers are found in the N tundra on Arctic islands in Canada and the coastal areas of Greenland and NW Europe. (Geir Jensen)

 

“Tiny fisherman” Half-collared kingfishers are seen at the water’s edge in S and E Africa and are often confused with the Malachite kingfisher. (Chris Krog)

 

Himalayan white-browed shrike-babbler found in the W Himalayas all the way E to central Nepal. (Arif Rudiyanto)

 

“Beauty duck” Spot-billed ducks prefer the freshwater lakes and marshes of range from Pakistan and India to S Japan. (Akshay Jadhav)

 

“Little, busy birds” Scaly-breasted munias are endemic to Asia and occur from India and Sri Lanka all the way E to Indonesia and the Philippines. (Akshay Jadhav)

 

“Southern specialist” Adelie penguins are considered to be among among the most southerly distributed of all seabirds, and are common along the entire Antarctic coast. (Elliott Neep / www.oryxphotography.com)

 

“Amethyst forest specialist” Violet-backed starlings are restricted to the woodlands and savannah forest edges of sub-Saharan Africa. (Chris Krog)

 

“Fire hawk” Black drongos are distributed in much of tropical S Asia from SW Iran to India and Sri Lanka all the way E to S China and Indonesia. (Pratibha Riswadkar)

 

Marico sunbirds are an active sunbird found in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. (Richard & Eileen Flack / www.theflacks.co.za)

 

Common kestrels are widespread in Europe, Asia and Africa, and do well in urban areas. (Ritesh Nangare)

 

Tawny eagles are found throughout Africa (except the Sahara Desert) and across tropical SW Asia to India. Photographed here in the Maasai Mara (Kenya) (Satya Narayan)

 

“Masked reader” Southern masked weavers are common throughout southern Africa and love their reading… (Chad Wright)