Middle American Leaftosser
Sclerurus mexicanus
Dark, rusty-brown bird of shady forest floors in humid evergreen forest of tropical foothills and highlands; often near gullies and streambeds, where digs its nest burrow into earth banks. Feeds by tossing leaves on the forest floor. Mostly seen as it flushes, when it flies off with loud “skweek” calls. Note the long slender bill, rich rusty throat and breast, and dark rusty rump. Listen for descending series of squeaky whistles. Occurs from Mexico to Panama.
Identification
The tawny-throated leaftosser is 15 to 17 cm (5.9 to 6.7 in) long and weighs 24 to 30 g (0.85 to 1.1 oz). The sexes are alike. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a dark reddish to chestnut brown head, upperparts, and tail, and chestnut rump and uppertail coverts. Their wings are darker brown than their back. Their throat and chest are tawny-rufous and the rest of their underparts similar to their back. Their fairly long and slightly decurved bill has a dark maxilla and a bicolored mandible. Their iris is brown and their legs and feet are dark brownish gray. Juveniles are similar to adults but are overall duller and have light streaks on their throat and breast. Subspecies S. m. pullus is generally browner than the nominate but with a redder rump and a paler throat.
Taxonomy
The tawny-throated leaftosser's taxonomy is unsettled. The International Ornithological Committee (IOC) and the Clements taxonomy assign it two subspecies, the nominate S. m. mexicanus (Sclater, PL, 1857) and S. m. pullus (Bangs, 1902).<p>The North American Classification Committee of the AOS and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) retain an older treatment. They include these five subspecies with the other two:<p>The South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society (AOS), the IOC, and Clements treat these five as belonging to a separate species, Sclerurus obscurior, that they variously call the dusky leaftosser or South American leaftosser.<p>This article follows the two-subspecies model.
- Scientific name
- Sclerurus mexicanus
- Authority
- Sclater, PL, 1857
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Furnariidae
- Genus
- Sclerurus
Range and habitat
According to most sources, the nominate subspecies of the tawny-throated leaftosser is found discontinuously from Veracruz and Chiapas in southeastern Mexico through Guatemala and El Salvador into Honduras. The American Ornithological Society also places it slightly more northerly in Mexico and BirdLife International extends its range south into Nicaragua. Subspecies S. m. pullus is found from Costa Rica into western Panama, and separately on Cerro Tacarcuna in eastern Panama. The species is patchily distributed within the broadly defined areas.<p>The tawny-throated leaftosser generally inhabits moist subtropical and tropical lowland and submontane evergreen and semi-deciduous forest. In Guatemala and Honduras it ranges in elevation between 700 and 2,200 m (2,300 and 7,200 ft); in Panama it is found down to sea level.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Finsch's Francolin
Scleroptila finschi
Medium-sized francolin with a mostly gray body, rufous head, and white throat. Found locally on the ground in grassy habitats including savanna, montane grassland, and woodland. Usually in pairs or small groups. Typical vocalization is a duet of “chur-it-cheer” phrases and a repeated single note. Somewhat similar to Red-winged Francolin, but duller, without a strongly marked face or heavily striped breast.
White-bellied Whistler
Pachycephala leucogastra
A chunky, thick-billed sparrow-sized songbird. Male is uniform gray above with a black head and a conspicuous white throat patch bordered below by a thick black chest band. Underparts are dull whitish. Female lacks black on head. Juvenile resembles a browner female, but is boldly streaked below. Singles and pairs can be found in upper levels of savanna woodlands, mangroves, and plantations. Differs from Black-headed Whistler in having a clear-cut white throat. Song is a slurred “soooweet” or “weet-weet-weet…” ending with either a whipping note, or a short jumble of strident notes.
Black-faced Grosbeak
Caryothraustes poliogaster
Rather chunky, social bird of humid evergreen forest and edge in tropical lowlands and foothills. Usually in small and often noisy groups (at times up to 50 birds), moving at middle to upper levels in fruiting trees; not usually with mixed-species feeding flocks. Sexes look alike, with subtly attractive plumage: mustard-yellow head and breast with black face and blue-gray belly. Calls are buzzy splutters and whistles.
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