Eastern Chat-Tanager
Calyptophilus frugivorus
A long-tailed, shy, ground-feeding species of wet broadleaf forests with dense undergrowth, especially near streams from sea level to 2,000 meters elevation. Dark brown, with white throat that contrasts sharply with dark gray-brown chest and belly. Primarily feeds in thick leaf litter. Rather similar to the Western Chat-Tanager, which is a bit larger and lacks the yellow eyering seen on Eastern Chat-Tanager. Songs include a squeaky “whi whi wit which-you,” and a “tsit tsit tsit-sweeek,” with a thin, high-pitched, and upslurred “sweeek.” Also a, “whe-whe-ts-tsi” and “pit-tee-oo ts tsi tsi tsi.” Songs are not as clearly whistled as are those of the Western Chat-Tanager. Call is a high, thin “tsit.”
Identification
The eastern chat-tanager is 17 to 19 cm (6.7 to 7.5 in) long and weighs about 26 to 39 g (0.92 to 1.4 oz). It has a long bill and a long tail so it somewhat resembles a mockingbird's shape. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a dusky brown crown and a mostly dark grayish brown face with a yellow line between the bill and eye and a yellow ring around the eye. Their upperparts are dark olive-brown. Their throat and underparts are white with a heavy wash of grayish brown on the flanks and lower belly. Subspecies C. f. neibae is smaller and darker than the nominate and has a reddish tail. C. f. abbotti is slightly smaller and a more grayish brown than the nominate.
Taxonomy
The eastern chat-tanager has three subspecies, the nominate C. f. frugivorus, C. f. neibae, and C. f. abbotti. Of these, only C. f. neibae is confirmed extant; the other two are considered extinct. It shares its genus with the western chat-tanager (C. tertius), which was previously treated as a fourth subspecies. The genus was long included in family Thraupidae, the "true" tanagers, but it was moved in 2017.
- Scientific name
- Calyptophilus frugivorus
- Authority
- (Cory, 1883)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Calyptophilidae
- Genus
- Calyptophilus
Range and habitat
The nominate subspecies of the eastern chat-tanager, C. f. frugivorus, occurred on the Samaná Peninsula on the northeast coast of the Dominican Republic but is considered extinct, with no records since the early 1980s. The subspecies C. f. neibae is found in the central Sierra de Neiba mountain range of the western Dominican Dominican Republic and possibly into Haiti. C. f. abbotti was found on Gonâve Island off the west coast of Haiti but is also believed to be extinct since the early 1980s; however, a lack of extensive surveys on the island means the subspecies potentially survives.<p>In the Dominican Republic, the species inhabits dense undergrowth in montane forest, especially in ravines and along streams. C. f. frugivorus was mostly found below 600 m (2,000 ft) but C. f. neibae can range up to or above 2,000 m (6,600 ft). C. f. abbotti's habitat on Gonâve was semi-arid scrublands near sea level.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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