| Scale-throated earthcreeper | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Furnariidae |
| Genus: | Upucerthia |
| Species: | U. dumetaria |
| Binomial name | |
| Upucerthia dumetaria Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1832 | |
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The scale-throated earthcreeper(Upucerthia dumetaria) is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. [2] It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, and possibly Uruguay. [3]
The scale-throated earthcreeper has three subspecies, the nominate U. d. dumetaria (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1832), U. d. peruana (Zimmer, JT, 1954), and U. d. hypoleuca (Reichenbach, 1853). [2] What is now the Patagonian forest earthcreeper (U. saturatior) was considered a fourth subspecies until about 2009. [4]
The scale-throated earthcreeper is 20 to 22 cm (7.9 to 8.7 in) long and weighs 37 to 55.5 g (1.3 to 2.0 oz). It is a large earthcreeper with a long and very decurved bill. The sexes' plumages are alike. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a whitish supercilium on an otherwise grayish white and dark grayish brown face. Their crown is a dull dark grayish brown with some fainter mottling. Their nape, back, rump, and uppertail coverts are uniform dull brownish gray. Their tail's central feathers are dull grayish brown and the rest blackish brown with dull rufous tips; the amount of rufous increases from inner to outer feathers. Their wings are grayish brown with paler edges and dull rufous bases to the flight feathers. Their chin is whitish, their throat whitish with thin dark bars, their breast dark grayish brown with a black scalloped appearance, their belly whitish, their flanks grayish brown, and their undertail coverts dull gray-brown. Their iris is dark brown, their bill blackish, and their legs and feet dark brown. Juveniles have fine streaks on their forehead and back, and more extensive scalloping on their underparts than adults. Subspecies U. d. hypoleuca is similar to the nominate but with more rufous upperparts and more buffy underparts. U. d. peruana is similar to hypoleuca but has a longer bill, is slightly lighter, and has less rufous in its wings. [5]
The nominate subspecies of the scale-throated woodcreeper is the southernmost. It is found in far southern Chile, and throughout Argentina at different times of the year. U. d. hypoleuca is found in western Bolivia, central Chile, and western Argentina. U. d. peruana is known only from two specimens collected in the 1950s in far southeastern Peru's Department of Puno. The species inhabits puna grassland and arid scrublands in both the lowlands and Andes. It favors rocky grassland and also shrubby slopes and shrub–steppe broken by ravines and rock outcrops. In elevation it ranges as high as 4,000 m (13,000 ft). [5]
Most populations of the scale-throated earthcreeper are year-round residents. Those in Tierra del Fuego and the far southern mainland are believed to migrate as far north as northern Argentina and possibly southern Uruguay. [5] (The South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society has only undocumented sight records from Uruguay, so it classes the species as hypothetical in that country.) [4]
The scale-throated earthcreeper's feeds on arthropods. It usually forages by itself, by probing and gleaning from the ground. [5]
The scale-throated earthcreeper breeds during the austral summer including at least October to December. It is thought to be monogamous. It usually nests at the end of a tunnel it excavates in an earth bank or in sloping ground, and floors the nest chamber with grasses. It has also been documented nesting in a hole in a human structure and in crevices in rocks. The clutch size is two to four eggs. The incubation period, time to fledging, and details of parental care are not known. [5]
The scale-throated earthcreeper often sings from the top of a bush. Its song is " 'chippy, chippy, chippy, chip' or 'pli-pli-pli-pli-pli...' increasing slightly in pitch and sometimes descending towards the end". Its calls include "a wheezy 'keet' or squeaky-sounding 'keep',...and sharp, dry 'dzit' ". [5]
The IUCN has assessed the scale-throated earthcreeper as being of Least Concern. It has a large range but its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified. [1] It is considered fairly common in the southern part of its range and very rare in the northern part. Its "[h]abitat is reasonably safe from anthropogenic disturbances, overgrazing being the only potential threat". [5]
The pale-breasted spinetail is a passerine bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Costa Rica, Panama, Trinidad, and in every mainland South American country except Chile and Ecuador.
The plain xenops is a passerine bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in the tropical New World from southern Mexico south as far as northern Bolivia and east across Brazil.
The rusty-fronted canastero is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is endemic to Peru.
The sharp-billed canastero or lesser canastero is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and has also occurred as a vagrant in Brazil.
The lark-like brushrunner is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
The sulphur-bearded reedhaunter or sulphur-throated spinetail is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay.
Parker's spinetail is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, and Peru.
The cinnamon-throated woodcreeper is a sub-oscine passerine bird in subfamily Dendrocolaptinae of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela.
The slender-billed miner is a species of bird in the subfamily Sclerurinae, the leaftossers and miners, of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru.
The orange-breasted thornbird is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Brazil, Uruguay, and possibly Argentina.
The chestnut-throated spinetail is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is mainly found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
The necklaced spinetail is a species of ovenbird in the family Furnariidae. It is found in Ecuador and Peru.
The rufous spinetail is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela.
The rock earthcreeper is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina and Bolivia, and as a vagrant in Chile.
The Chaco earthcreeper is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay, and as a vagrant in Brazil.
The Bolivian earthcreeper is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina and Bolivia.
The straight-billed earthcreeper is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru.
The striated earthcreeper is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is endemic to Peru.
The buff-breasted earthcreeper is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru.
The Patagonian forest earthcreeper, also known as the forest earthcreeper, is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina and Chile.
