- Pachyramphus surinamus
Identification
13.2 - 13.8cm.
Male
- Glossy black above with a slight bluish sheen
- Crown sometimes scaly-looking
- Pure white underparts
- Dark iris
- Blackish bill
- Dark legs
Female
- Blackish crown with broadly dark chestnut-brown tipped feathers
- Pale line above lores
- Pale grey nape and upper back
- White lower back to rump
- Blackish wings with broad cinnamon-rufous edging
- Blackish tail
- White throat and underparts
Distribution
South America: found in Suriname, French Guiana and lower Amazonian Brazil. One record from [[Venezuela[[.
Poorly known, obviously rare and local.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species.
Habitat
Found in high canopy and subcanopy of tall humid forest and forest borders. Also in adjacent clearings and savanna forest.
Occurs from sea-level up to 300m.
Behaviour
Usually seen in pairs moving through thick foliage in high canopy.
Diet
Feeds on insects, takes also some fruit.
Breeding
Breeding season from July to October in Brazil. The nest is a bulky globular structure with a side entrance and made of dead leaves, fibres and moss. It's suspended from a drooping branch 25 to 30m above the ground up in a tree, usually near a wasp or bee nest.
Movements
No movements known.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2013. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.8., with updates to August 2013. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliot, and D Christie, eds. 2004. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 9: Cotingas to Pipits and Wagtails. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334696
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Glossy-backed Becard. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 15 January 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Glossy-backed_Becard
