Brown cacholote

Brown cacholote
At Santa Fe Province, Argentina
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Furnariidae
Genus:	Pseudoseisura
Species:	P. lophotes
Binomial name
Pseudoseisura lophotes (Reichenbach, 1853)
Subspecies
P. l. lophotes Reichenbach, 1853 P. l. argentina Parkes, 1960
Year-round

The brown cacholote (Pseudoseisura lophotes) is a jay-sized bird in the true ovenbird family, Furnariinae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, in forests and parks. Unlike many other birds, the brown cacholote builds large, pitcher-like nests year-round. Breeding begins in mid-November, with both parents sharing the responsibility for taking care of the nest equally. They are omnivorous, primarily eating various arthropods, along with eggs of other birds, fruits, or grain. They are a least-concern species.

Taxonomy and systematics

The brown cacholote were first described by Ludwig Reichenbach in 1853, in his book Handbuch der speciellen Ornithologie, as Homorus lophotes, ^{[2] [3]} however it was later moved into its genus Pseudoseisura by Miguel Lillo in 1902. ^[4] The specific epithet, lophotes, derives from the Greek word lophōtos, meaning "crested". ^[5]

• P. l. lophotes Reichenbach, 1853 — Nominate subspecies.
• P. l. argentina Parkes, 1960 — Darker in plumage compared to nominate, with especially dark crest. Found in northern and central Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil. ^[5]

Derryberry et al.'s 2011 study established a cladogram for Pseudoseisura, along with the rest of the Furnariidae. ^[6]

Pseudoseisura	Brown cacholote (P. lophotes) White-throated cacholote (P. gutturalis) Caatinga cacholote (P. cristata) Grey-crested cacholote (P. unirufa)

Before 2024, the brown cacholote's taxonomy was previously unsettled, as the International Ornithological Committee and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World assign it two subspecies, the nominate P. l. lophotes and P. l. argentina, ^{[7] [8]} but the Clements Checklist did not recognize P. l. argentina, treating the brown cacholote as monotypic. ^[9] However, in 2024, it was recognized as a subspecies. ^[10]

Description

The brown cacholote is 24 to 26 cm (9.4 to 10 in) long and weighs 63 to 79 g (2.2 to 2.8 oz). It is one of the largest furnariids and its prominent crest somewhat resembles that of a jay. The entire bird is rufous, with varying shades in different areas. The area around the lore is slightly darker, alongside the bottom of the tail feathers. The breast is lighter in color compared to the throat, which is especially vibrant. The crest is especially dark, along with the primary and secondary flight feathers. Both sexes have the same plumage. ^{[11] [5]}

The brown cacholote is very distinct in its habitat, and is easily identifiable. ^[5]

Distribution and habitat

The nominate subspecies of the brown cacholote is found in southern Bolivia and western Paraguay. ^[5] Subspecies P. l. argentina is found in northern and central Argentina, far southern Brazil, and Uruguay. ^[5]

The species inhabits tropical deciduous forest, the edges of gallery forest, chaco woodlands and scrublands, as well as parks and gardens in urban areas. In elevation it ranges from near sea level to 900 m (3,000 ft). ^{[7] [11] [12]} The brown cacholote is a year-round resident throughout its range. ^[11]

Behavior

Breeding

Unlike many other birds, nest-building occurs year-round, although nests were more frequently built in the winter months (July-October). ^[13] Nests usually took 15-37 days to build, with 62 days between new nests on average. ^[13] Nests were used for both roosting and breeding, however they only remained in them for a short period (42 days). New nests were always built from scratch, and old nests were never reused, perhaps because of concern for parasites. Old nests were often destroyed or reused as materials for new nests, or destroyed with the foundation intact for reuse in a later nest. Sometimes a pair would immediately start building a new nest after they finished their previous one. ^[13] Nests are usually built in the pair's territory, which would contain around 4.4 nests on average.

Nests were most often found on solitary trees or on the edges of cleared woodlands, around 2–17 m (6.6–55.8 ft) off the ground. ^[13] The brown cacholote's nest is very unique, consisting of a large, oval chamber, around 22 cm (8.7 in) in interior diameter, and a slightly down-curved entrance, 9–10 cm (3.5–3.9 in) in inner diameter and 30 cm (12 in) in length, with the entire nest around 90 cm (35 in) in length. ^{[5] [13]} Nests are made of thorny twigs, or if unavailable, regular sticks. Twigs measured on average 15.6 cm (6.1 in) in length, and 5 mm (0.20 in) in diameter. ^[13]

Eggs are 20.8 and 27.1 mm (0.82 and 1.07 in) in length and diameter, respectively, weighing on average 7.6 g (0.27 oz). Eggs are often stained with blood. ^[13]

Egg-laying begins in mid-November, however, it can occur as early as late September or as late as mid-January. If eggs were preyed upon, a new nest would be built and a replacement clutch would be laid. ^[13] Second broods, similar to replacement clutches, would accompany a new nest, and would usually occur around 70-100 days after the first clutch, although they were very rare. Clutches consist of 2-3 eggs, and older pairs have, on average, larger clutches. ^[13] Incubation takes 18-20 days, and eggs were attended to by both parents during the day, however at night only the female remained in the nest. Sessions between the male and females were shared equally during the day, each taking on average 28 minutes, usually only exchanging roles when the other had arrived at the nest. ^[13]

Both genders spend equal time and energy caring for nestlings, bringing on average 11 items per hour, however during the last week before the nestlings fledged, the frequency would expedite to on average 19 items/h. After fledging, the parents would continue to bring food to them for 20 more days, reducing the amount as time progresses. ^[13] At birth, nestlings had pale yellow flanges, grey plumule, and weighed 5.7 g (0.20 oz), however, by day 17, nestlings would be fully feathered, and weighed 80 g (2.8 oz). Fledging usually occured 19 days after hatching. ^[13] Fledglings remained on the parent's territory for 5-13 months, with females remaining on average 6 months longer. Fledglings were not allowed to help with nest construction and were often chased from the nest. After departure, fledglings would move away from the parent's territory or leave entirely. ^[13]

Feeding

The brown cacholote is omnivorous, feeding primarily on arthropods but also includes eggs of other birds, seeds, and fruit in its diet. It usually forages in pairs or with other brown cacholotes. It feeds mostly on the ground, gleaning, probing, and digging in soil and leaf litter. It has also been observed flaking dung and hammering and pulling on bark and leaf buds. ^[11]

Songs and calls Listen to brown cacholote on xeno-canto

Vocalization

The brown cacholote's song is an "musical duet of well-spaced, grating notes, intermixed with soft, descending 'tjew' notes". ^[12] Its call is "krok". ^[11]

Conservation

The IUCN has assessed the brown cacholote as being of Least Concern. It has large range and an unknown population size that is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified. ^[1] It is considered uncommon to fairly common and occurs in several protected areas. ^[11]

References

1. BirdLife International (2018). "Brown Cacholote Pseudoseisura lophotes". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018 e.T22702740A130276118. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22702740A130276118.en . Retrieved 19 November 2023.
2. Reichenbach, H. G. Ludwig; Reichenbach, H. G. Ludwig (1836). Die vollständigste Naturgeschichte der Vögel. Dresden: Expedition der Vollständigsten Naturgeschichte.
3. "Avibase - The World Bird Database". avibase.bsc-eoc.org. Retrieved 2026-01-06.
4. Miguel, Lillo (1902). "Enumeración sistemática de las aves de la provincia de Tucumán" [Systematic enumeration of birds in the province of Tucumán]". Anales del Museo Nacional de Buenos Aires [Annals of the National Museum of Buenos Aires]. 3 (1). 169 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
5. Remsen, Jr (2025). "Brown Cacholote (Pseudoseisura lophotes), version 2.0". Birds of the World. doi:10.2173/bow.brncac1.02. ISSN   2771-3105.
6. Derryberry, Elizabeth P.; Claramunt, Santiago; Derryberry, Graham; Chesser, R. Terry; Cracraft, Joel; Aleixo, Alexandre; Pérez-Emán, Jorge; Remsen Jr., J. V.; Brumfield, Robb T. (2011). "LINEAGE DIVERSIFICATION AND MORPHOLOGICAL EVOLUTION IN A LARGE-SCALE CONTINENTAL RADIATION: THE NEOTROPICAL OVENBIRDS AND WOODCREEPERS (AVES: FURNARIIDAE): DIVERSIFICATION OF A CONTINENTAL RADIATION". Evolution. 65 (10): 2973–2986. doi:10.1111/j.1558-5646.2011.01374.x.
7. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2023). "Ovenbirds, woodcreepers". IOC World Bird List. v 13.2. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
8. HBW and BirdLife International (2022) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. Version 7. Available at: https://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v7_Dec22.zip retrieved December 13, 2022
9. Clements, J. F., P.C. Rasmussen, T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, A. Spencer, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2023. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2023. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ retrieved October 28, 2023
10. "October 2024 – Clements Checklist". www.birds.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
11. Remsen, Jr (2020). "Brown Cacholote (Pseudoseisura lophotes), version 1.0". Birds of the World. doi:10.2173/bow.brncac1.01. ISSN   2771-3105.
12. van Perlo, Ber (2009). A Field Guide to the Birds of Brazil. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 222. ISBN   978-0-19-530155-7.
13. Nores, Ana I.; Nores, Manuel (1994). "Nest Building and Nesting Behavior of the Brown Cacholote". The Wilson Bulletin. 106 (1): 106–120. ISSN   0043-5643.