Tacarcuna Wood-Quail
Odontophorus dialeucos
This rare chickenlike bird has an exceptionally small range on the border between Panama and Colombia. Found on the ground in mature forest from around 1,000–1,400 m. Dark brown overall with a black head, a whitish face and eyebrow merging with a buffy nape, and a white band across upper chest. Lives in small groups, which can be difficult to see. Listen for the rollicking whistled song, typical of wood-quail.
Identification
The Tacarcuna wood quail is 22 to 28 cm (8.7 to 11.0 in) long. Males are estimated to weigh 264 g (9.3 oz) and females 258 g (9.1 oz). Males' crown and throat are black and the supercilium, lores, and chin are white. The sides and back of the neck are cinnamon. The back and rump are olive brown with black vermiculation and the breast and belly are chestnut speckled with white. Females are similar but their underparts are more tawny brown. Juveniles are similar to the female but the white of the chin is smaller and the black of the throat broader.
Taxonomy
Some authors have suggested that the Tarcarcuna wood quail and gorgeted wood quail (Odontophorus strophium), Venezuelan wood quail (O. columbianus), black-fronted wood quail (O. atrifons), and black-breasted wood quail (O. lecuolaemus) are actually a single species, but this treatment has not been accepted by the major avian taxonomic systems. The species is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Odontophorus dialeucos
- Authority
- Wetmore, 1963
- Order
- Galliformes
- Family
- Odontophoridae
- Genus
- Odontophorus
Range and habitat
The Tacarcuna wood quail is found along the Tacarcuna Ridge in Panama's Darién Province and Colombia's Chocó Department. It inhabits the floor of the subtropical forest at elevations between 1,050 and 1,450 m (3,440 and 4,760 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
No information about the Tacarcuna wood quail's foraging behavior or diet has been published.<p>A juvenile Tacarcuna wood quail was collected in early June but no other information about the species' breeding phenology has been published.<p>The Tacarcuna wood quail's vocalizations are poorly known.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Streak-throated Canastero
Asthenes humilis
Small, plump brown bird with a fairly long tail sometimes held cocked. Has lighter brown underparts, a faint white eyebrow, and black streaking on the face and throat. Found in rocky grasslands with short grass at high elevations, where it forages on the ground between patches of grass. Compared to the similar Cordilleran Canastero, Streak-throated has more prominent streaking in the face and throat and a brown tail (reddish brown in Cordilleran). Its song is a soft, short trill, and it also gives bursts of “pit” notes.
Paria Brushfinch
Arremon phygas
Range-restricted striking sparrow with black head and gray eyebrow. Back and tail olive-yellow, underparts gray; black band across chest. Found alone or in pairs or family groups on ground or at mid-level in dense understory, second growth vegetation at forest edges, and coffee plantations. Song and calls are repetitive and very high-pitched. No similar species in range. Endemic to the Turimiquire and Paria regions of northeastern Venezuela.
Makira Dwarf-Kingfisher
Ceyx gentianus
A small kingfisher with deep purplish-blue upperparts and clean white underparts, a white neck spot, and bright orange legs. Bill is black. Prefers mature forest, not necessarily near water, often perching low. No other dwarf-kingfisher shares its range. Told from Little Kingfisher by orange legs and lack of blue on chest. Call apparently nearly identical to that of other Melanesian dwarf-kingfishers: a high-pitched, weak repetitive whistle, often given in flight.
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