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Revision as of 12:15, 6 October 2007
- Melozone biarcuatum
Identification
AKA White-faced Ground-Sparrow
15 cm long and weighs 28 g. The bill is dark-grey, the upperparts are olive-brown, the crown is rufous and the underparts are mainly white.
Juveniles are browner above, have yellower underparts, and a duller indistinct head pattern.
The male’s song is a whistled pst’t’t’t peer peer peer whee whee whee.
Distribution
Southern Mexico to western Honduras and Costa Rica.
Taxonomy
The Costa Rican form may be a separate species, M. cabanisi.
Habitat
Altitudes between 600 and 1600m in the undergrowth and thickets of semi-open woodland, coffee plantations, hedgerows and large gardens.
Behaviour
The female builds a lined, cup shaped nest, in a bush. She lays 2-3 eggs which are white, blotched with ruddy colour, and she incubates these for 12-14 days. The male helps feed the chicks. The nest is sometimes parasitised by the Bronzed Cowbird.
It is a ground feeder and its diet includes seeds, fallen berries, insects and spiders. It is usually in pairs, but is a shy species best seen at near or dusk.
