Alternative name: Southern Chestnut-tailed Antbird
- Sciaphylax hemimelaena
Identification
11–12 cm (4¼-4¾ in); a smallish antbird with a noticeably short tail.
Male
- Dark grey head and neck, with a scaley appearance
- Brown back
- Rufous-chestnut tail
- Brownish-black wing-coverts, the white and buffy tips forming two wing-bars
- Black throat and breast
Distribution
From south of Rio Amazonas and Rio Maranon in Peru, to Santa Cruz in Bolivia, and east in Brazil to Rio Xingu, Rio Teles Pires, and Rio Guapore.
Taxonomy
Placed in genus Myrmeciza by Gill and Donsker.
Subspecies
Two subspecies are recognized[1]:
- S.h. hemimelaena:
- S.h. pallens:
- Central Brazil south of River Amazon to north-eastern Bolivia (eastern Santa Cruz)
Habitat
Moist lowland forest to about 1300 m asl in the eastern Andes of Peru and Bolivia. Often seen near fallen trees.
Behaviour
Diet
Their diet consists of a variety of insects, larvae and probably some arthropods such as spiders.
Breeding
The nest is an open cup built on a curved palm leaf, woven with rootlets and dead leaves. The 2 cream eggs have pink markings.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Isler et al. 2002, Auk 119: 362-378
- BF Member observations
- Arthur Grosset
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved Feb 2018)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Chestnut-tailed Antbird. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 12 October 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Chestnut-tailed_Antbird
