Point-tailed Palmcreeper
Berlepschia rikeri
A strikingly-patterned medium-sized bird of palm swamps. Bright rufous upperparts and tail contrast with black-and-white streaked head and underparts. Found only in Moriche palm stands at rainforest edge or in swampy savanna regions. Usually in pairs that masterfully evade detection by slinking through the leaves and bases of palm fronds, which are probed for insect prey. Does not join mixed-species flocks. Best detected by voice: distinctive song is a rapid series of piping whistles, dropping slightly in pitch at end. Plumage pattern is similar to many woodcreepers, but none have such bold streaking, and most are unlikely to be found in Moriche palm stands.
Identification
Ridway says of the point-tailed palmcreeper, "This handsome species, of very striking appearance, is entirely different in coloration from any Dendrocolaptine bird with which I am acquainted".<p>The point-tailed palmcreeper is 18 to 22 cm (7.1 to 8.7 in) long and weighs 32 to 37 g (1.1 to 1.3 oz). The sexes are alike. Adults have a face with thin black and white streaks. Its crown and upper back are also streaked black and white; the streaks become "teardrops" on the back. Its lower back, rump, and uppertail coverts are bright chestnut. Its tail is also bright chestnut; its pointed feathers have stiffened bases. Its wing coverts are chestnut and its flight feathers are blackish fuscous; the secondaries have rufous edges. Its throat is white with long black streaks. Its breast has wide black and white streaks that fade and lose crispness on the belly. Its undertail coverts are barred black and white. Its iris is orange-brown, its maxilla gray to dark gray, its mandible gray to light gray, and its legs and feet gray to dark gray. Juveniles have only small black dots on the white throat and their breast is spotted instead of streaked.
Taxonomy
The point-tailed palmcreeper is the only member of its genus and has no subspecies.<p>Robert Ridgway initially placed it in genus Picolaptes and later created its current genus. With it Ridgway honors the ornithologist Hans von Berlepsch, who pointed out to him the significant differences of the species with the others of genus Picolaptes. The specific epithet rikeri honors C.B. Riker, who collected the type specimen that Ridgway used to describe the species.
- Scientific name
- Berlepschia rikeri
- Authority
- (Ridgway, 1887)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Dendrocolaptidae
- Genus
- Berlepschia
Range and habitat
The point-tailed palmcreeper is found from southern Venezuela east through the Guianas into northeastern Brazil; south through southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, and eastern Peru into northern Boliva; and across Amazonian Brazil to the Atlantic and as far south as Mato Grosso and Goiás states. It primarily inhabits Mauritia palm swamps and forest, and occasionally areas of other palms. The swamps may be in evergreen forest or savanna. In elevation it occurs below 400 m (1,300 ft) in most of its range. It does reach 650 m (2,100 ft) in Ecuador.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The point-tailed palmcreeper is a year-round resident throughout its range.<p>The point-tailed palmcreeper's diet is arthropods; members of Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Formicidae, and Araneae have been documented as prey. It almost always forages in pairs. It is acrobatic as it gleans from palm branches and fronds, especially at their bases; it uses its tail as a brace and often hangs upside down.<p>The point-tailed palmcreeper is thought to be monogamous. Its breeding season has not been defined but appears to span July to November in parts of Brazil. One nest was constructed of sticks within dead fronds of a Mauritia palm. The clutch size, incubation period, time to fledging, and details of parental care are not known.<p>The point-tailed palmcreepers song is "a loud series of 20–30 staccato, strident notes, on same pitch or ascending slightly and then descending at end". It has been put into words as "ka-koo, didididididididididi", "dedede-kee!-kee!-kee!-kee!-kee!-kee!-kee!-kee!", and "weet-weet-witwitwit---".
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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