Lunulated antbird

Lunulated antbird
Illustration of a female
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Thamnophilidae
Genus:	Oneillornis
Species:	O. lunulatus
Binomial name
Oneillornis lunulatus (Sclater, PL & Salvin, 1873)
Synonyms
Gymnopithys lunulatus

The lunulated antbird (Oneillornis lunulatus) is a species of insectivorous bird in subfamily Thamnophilinae of family Thamnophilidae, the "typical antbirds". ^[2] It is found in Ecuador and Peru. ^[3]

Taxonomy and systematics

The lunulated antbird was described and illustrated by the English ornithologists Philip Sclater and Osbert Salvin in 1873 and given the binomial name Pithys lunulatus. ^[4] The species was subsequently included in the genus Gymnopithys . It was moved to a newly erected genus Oneillornis based on the results of a molecular phylogenetic study published in 2014. ^[5] It shares the genus with the white-throated antbird (O. salvini) with which it has been treated as conspecific. ^{[2] [6]} The lunulated antbird is monotypic. ^[2]

Description

The lunulated antbird is 13 to 14.5 cm (5.1 to 5.7 in) long and weighs 22 to 26 g (0.78 to 0.92 oz). Adult males are mostly gray. They have a white supercilium, ear coverts, chin, and throat. Their tail is blackish gray. Adult females have a white supercilium, dark olive-brown lores, and a white chin and throat. Their crown and nape are yellowish olive-brown; their back and rump are yellowish olive-brown with blackish edges and light buff tips on the feathers. Their tail is dark grayish brown with some white barring. Their underparts are olive-brown that is paler and yellower in the center of the breast. Juvenile males resemble adult females but without the white supercilium and only patchy white on the throat. ^{[6] [7] [8]}

Distribution and habitat

The lunulated antbird is found in eastern Ecuador from Sucumbíos Province to Morona-Santiago Province and in northern and central Peru west of the Rio Napo and Rio Ucayali. It primarily inhabits humid várzea evergreen forest and the transitional forest between it and terra firme . It almost entirely remains in the forest undergrowth. In elevation it occurs below 300 m (1,000 ft) in Ecuador but reaches 950 m (3,100 ft) locally in Peru. ^{[6] [7] [8]}

Behavior

Movement

The lunulated antbird is not known to migrate. ^[6]

Feeding

The lunulated antbird is an obligate ant follower that feeds on a variety of arthropods that flee foraging army ant swarms, such as those of Eciton burchelli and genus Labidus . It typically forages individually, in pairs, and in family groups, perching within about 1 m (3 ft) of the ground though as high as 3 m (10 ft), and sallying or pouncing to the ground after prey. It is dominant over smaller antbirds but subordinate to larger species of other families such as woodcreepers. ^{[6] [7] [9]}

Breeding

The lunulated antbird's breeding season in Peru is thought to span from October to April; its season in Ecuador is not known. The clutch size is believed to be two eggs. Nothing else is known about the species' breeding biology. ^[6]

Songs and calls Listen to the lunulated antbird on xeno-canto

Vocalization

The lunulated antbird's song is "a distinct introductory note followed by a fairly rapid, decelerating, rising-falling series of popping notes becoming rising mellow whistles" PEW pipi'pi'pwee-pwee-pwee-peeerr". ^[8] Its calls include a "long and usually interrupted 'chirr' and [an] abrupt 'chup' ". ^[6]

Status

The IUCN has assessed the lunulated antbird as being of Least Concern. Its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified. ^[1] It is considered "rare and local" in Ecuador ^[7] and "rare to uncommon" in Peru ^[8] . It occurs in several private preserves and a few federally protected areas. It is thought "to be of high sensitivity to human disturbance". "Although its habitat is at present relatively intact, much of [eastern] Ecuador has been opened up for oil exploration and drilling, and the road-building and subsequent human colonization and environmental degradation that inevitably follow could place this species at risk in the future." ^[6]

References

1. BirdLife International (2016). "Lunulated Antbird Oneillornis lunulatus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T22701879A93852818. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22701879A93852818.en . Retrieved 25 May 2024.
2. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (January 2024). "Antbirds". IOC World Bird List. v 14.1. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
3. Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 4 March 2024. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved March 5, 2024
4. Sclater, Philip L.; Salvin, Osbert (1873). "On the birds of Eastern Peru". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 1873 (2): 252–311 [276] Plate 26.
5. Isler, M.L.; Bravo, G.A.; Brumfield, R.T. (2014). "Systematics of the obligate ant-following clade of antbirds (Aves:Passeriformes: Thamnophilidae)". Wilson Journal of Ornithology. 126 (4): 635–648. doi:10.1676/13-199.1. S2CID   83806772.
6. Zimmer, K. and M.L. Isler (2020). Lunulated Antbird (Oneillornis lunulatus), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.lunant2.01 retrieved May 25, 2024
7. Ridgely, Robert S.; Greenfield, Paul J. (2001). The Birds of Ecuador: Field Guide. Vol. II. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. p. 430. ISBN   978-0-8014-8721-7.
8. Schulenberg, T.S., D.F. Stotz, D.F. Lane, J.P. O’Neill, and T.A. Parker III. 2010. Birds of Peru. Revised and updated edition. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Plate 173
9. Willis, Edwin O. (1968). "Studies of the behavior of Lunulated and Salvin's antbirds" (PDF). Condor. 70 (2): 128–148. doi:10.2307/1365956. JSTOR   1365956.