White-bellied Tanager
Tangara brasiliensis
Endemic to southeastern Brazil. Striking tanager found in the canopy in forest, edges, plantations, and gardens. Mostly seen in pairs or small single-species groups. Depending on the light can look quite dark, but has a mostly blue head and breast with black on the crown and around the bill, and blue flanks with black spots. Upperparts are mostly black with some blue highlights. White belly. The call is a series of high-pitched “psii” notes.
Identification
Adult birds are 14 cm (5.5 in) long. They are long-tailed and with a dark stout pointed bill. The adult is mainly dark blue and black, with turquoise edging to the primaries. It differs from the turquoise tanager in that it is larger, has an overall more silvery blue plumage, blue edging to the primaries and a white belly. The song is a fast squeaky chatter tic-tic-tic-tic-tic.
Taxonomy
The turquoise tanager was formally described in 1766 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the 12th edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Tanagra brasiliensis. His description was based on Mathurin Jacques Brisson's Le tangara blue de Brésil that Brisson had described and illustrated in 1760. The type locality is Rio de Janeiro. The white-bellied tanager is now placed in the genus Tangara that was introduced by Brisson.<p>The white-bellied tanager was formerly treated as a subspecies of the turquoise tanager (Tangara mexicana).
- Scientific name
- Tangara brasiliensis
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Thraupidae
- Genus
- Tangara
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
White-bellied Erpornis
Erpornis zantholeuca
Small, crested, yuhina-like bird, frequently seen as a part of mixed flocks in a wide range of forested habitats. Upperparts yellowish green, underparts dingy gray except for yellow undertail coverts and whitish throat. Forages mostly in the upper layers of vegetation, from which its loud “nay nay” call is often heard.
Gray-streaked Flycatcher
Muscicapa griseisticta
Small and streaky flycatcher, with longer-winged appearance than Asian Brown and Dark-sided Flycatchers. Breeds in mixed and deciduous forest in lowlands and hilly regions. Dark brown above, white below, with distinct pale eyering and long, dark streaks below. Streaking can resemble the patterning of some Dark-sided Flycatchers but is more distinct, less smudgy-looking. Asian Brown Flycatcher shares the same general color scheme but is paler brown and lacks streaking.
Orange-crowned Manakin
Heterocercus aurantiivertex
Dull manakin of seasonally flooded swamp forest in Amazonian lowlands. Male is less colorful than most manakins, with brown upperparts, cinnamon underparts, and a white throat; his orange crown is usually hidden and not often seen in the field. Female is duller; she is mostly olive-brown with a pale throat and face, and lacks a crown patch. Usually seen at lower to middle levels of forest along streams and lakes. Typical song is a rapid trill with undulating pitch.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.