White-bellied Wren
Uropsila leucogastra
Small stub-tailed wren of tropical woodland, commonest in drier areas, uncommon and local in humid areas. Often more visible than other small forest wrens, clambering at mid-levels in open understory. Note the ‘blank’ whitish face and broad whitish eyebrow, along with a fairly short tail that is often held cocked. Song is short pleasant warble, tiddle-ee or tiddle-ee-oo, simpler than songs of most wrens.
Identification
The white-bellied wren is 9.5 to 10 cm (3.7 to 3.9 in) long. Males weigh 9.8 to 10.5 g (0.35 to 0.37 oz) and females 8 to 9.1 g (0.28 to 0.32 oz). The nominate subspecies has a medium brown crown, upperparts, and tail; the rump is slightly reddish and the tail has many thin dark bars. It has a gray-white supercilium, a medium brown stripe behind the eye, and gray cheeks mottled with brown. Its throat, chest, and upper belly are gray and the flanks and vent area buff. The other subspecies differ somewhat in the intensity of the brown of the upperparts and the bars on the tail.
Taxonomy
The white-bellied wren is the only member of genus Uropsila, but its taxonomy at the subspecies level is uncertain. The International Ornithological Committee (IOC) names five subspecies, the nominate Uropsila leucogastra leucogastra, U. l. pacifica, U. l. centralis, U. l. restricta, and U. l. brachyura. The Handbook of Birds of the World adds U. l. musica. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Birds of the World mentions musica in its text but does not list it; it does list two others in addition to the above five, U. l. grisescens and U. l. australis. Cornell qualifies their additions by noting that australis "may be separable" and that grisescens is "doubtfully valid" because it was based on soot-discolored specimens.
- Scientific name
- Uropsila leucogastra
- Authority
- (Gould, 1837)
- Order
- Unknown
- Family
- Trogonidae
- Genus
- Uropsila
Range and habitat
The white-bellied wren has two widely separated populations. U. l. pacifica is found in western Mexico from southern Nayarit south into Guerrero. The other subspecies are found from southern Tamaulipas in northeastern Mexico south into the Yucatan Peninsula, Belize, and northern Guatemala, and (slightly separately) in northern Honduras. <p>The white-bellied wren inhabits a range of woodland types from the semi-arid forest of western Mexico to the humid rainforest of the Yucatan Peninsula. In northeastern Mexico it frequents thickets of wild pineapple (Bromelia pinguin). In elevation it ranges from sea level to 500 m (1,600 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The white-bellied wren forages for insects and spiders in vegetation "from ground level to a considerable height". In the southern part of its range it joins mixed-species flocks following army ant swarms.<p>The white-bellied wren's breeding season extends from at least late March to June. Its nest is shaped like a chemical retort, an oval ball with a downward pointing funnel entrance. It is woven from fine grass and "decorated" with lichens, moss, and other materials. It is usually placed in a spiny location such as a Bromelia thicket or an Acacia tree. The clutch size is usually four eggs. Both sexes apparently incubate the eggs and both do feed the young.<p>The white-bellied wren's song is "a short series of 6 rapid up-and-down notes, descending at end", rather bubbly in the eastern population but not the western. Its calls include a "low 'chek', scolding chatter, and hard dry cracking rattle."
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Bare-crowned Antbird
Gymnocichla nudiceps
Scarce and rather shy antbird of evergreen forest, second growth thickets, and overgrown plantations in humid tropical lowlands. Usually in pairs, on or near the ground, where often accompanies army ant swarms to capture prey flushed by the ants. Male is black with white wingbars with bright blue naked skin on crown and around eyes. Female is rusty brown overall with bright blue naked eyering.
Madagascar Harrier-Hawk
Polyboroides radiatus
Large gray raptor with black wings and tail. There is a single white band through the tail and bare skin around the face that is normally yellow but which can flush bright red. Immature is brown, with a pale head and pale fringes on the wing that separate it from all other brown raptors in its range. Endemic to Madagascar, and found in a variety of habitats, including forest, scrub, and savannah. Absent from pure grassland and from the high mountains. Often soars. Call is a long, high whistle, often given in flight.
Spinifexbird
Poodytes carteri
A flat-crowned, plain brownish bird with a long tail found in arid spinifex/tussock grassland in inland Australia. Fairly secretive and skulking but inquisitive. Compare Australian Reed-Warbler and Tawny Grassbird, both species of much wetter grasslands, not spinifex habitats. Compare also Rufous Songlark, which has a different song, more patterned back, and rusty rump. Song is a variety of chirped phrases, similar to reed warblers.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.