Long-billed Woodcreeper
Nasica longirostris
This large and unmistakable woodcreeper is widespread across much of Amazonia. It has a long pinkish bill, white throat, and distinct white streaking on the neck and breast. Typically found singly or in pairs in the mid-levels and canopy of lowland forest and edges, often near water. Frequently detected by voice; listen for its series of long, plain whistles, often at dawn or dusk.
Identification
The long-billed woodcreeper is one of the largest woodcreepers, with a slim body, small head, long neck, long tail, and an exceptionally long, slightly decurved, bill. It is 34 to 36 cm (13 to 14 in) long and weighs 78 to 92 g (2.8 to 3.2 oz). The sexes are alike. The adult's crown, nape, and auricular area are blackish brown with whitish buff streaks. It has a white supercilium, throat, and foreneck. Its back, rump, wings, and tail are bright cinnamon-rufous to rufous-chestnut. The tips of its outermost primaries are dark brown. Its breast and sides are streaked black and white; the rest of its underparts are olive-buff with spots and bars. Its iris is yellowish brown, reddish brown, or dark brown. Its bill is ivory to light gray or yellowish gray, often with a dusky base to the mandible. Its legs and feet are gray to brown. Juvenile birds have paler underparts than adults, sometimes with faint barring on the belly, and with paler and less distinct streaks on the breast.
Taxonomy
The long-billed woodcreeper is the only member of genus Nasica. It is monotypic: No subspecies are recognized. Its closest relative is the cinnamon-throated woodcreeper (Dendrexetastes rufigula).<p>The population south of the Amazon River has significantly longer bills than those birds north of the river, and has been treated by some authors as subspecies N. l. australis.
- Scientific name
- Nasica longirostris
- Authority
- (Vieillot, 1818)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Furnariidae
- Genus
- Nasica
Range and habitat
The long-billed woodcreeper is found in the Orinoco River Basin of southern Venezuela and in the Amazon Basin from eastern Colombia, central Ecuador, north-central and eastern Peru, and northern Bolivia through Amazonian Brazil to the Atlantic Ocean in the states of Amapá, Pará, and Maranhão. Its range also extends north into central and eastern French Guiana. It is seldom far from water, and primarily inhabits the interior and edges of várzea, river-edge, and swamp forests and on well-forested river islands. It occurs somewhat less frequently in terra firme and cerrado gallery forests. In elevation it mostly occurs below 300 m (1,000 ft). In Colombia and Ecuador it reaches 400 m (1,300 ft), and is found up to 500 m (1,600 ft) in some other places.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The long-billed woodcreeper is a year-round resident throughout its range.<p>The long-billed woodcreeper usually forages by itself, but also in pairs and sometimes in mixed-species feeding flocks. It hitches along trunks and large branches from the forest's mid-level to the canopy and also creeps and probes among living and dead leaf clusters, epiphytes, bark crevices, and palm fronds. It sometimes feeds on prey fleeing army ant swarms but does not habitually follow swarms. Its diet is not known in detail but appears to be mainly arthropods and also includes small reptiles and amphibians.<p>The long-billed woodcreeper's breeding season is not well defined but appears to include at least January to May. A nest was discovered in a tree cavity 4 m (13 ft) above the ground. Both parents were feeding nestlings. The clutch size, incubation period, time to fledging, and other details of parental care are not known.<p>The long-billed woodcreeper sings during the day, but infrequently. Its song is a "[l]oud and far-carrying...series of 3-4 eerie and plaintive whistles, e.e. 't w o o o o o ó o o...t w o o o o o ó o o'." It is also described as "loud melancholy-sounding, drawn-out calls 'wuuuueet' " repeated three or four times. Its calls include "chat-ak", "chat-at-at", "chuckling notes", "weetut", and "weet-erweet".
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Black-tailed Trogon
Trogon melanurus
Large trogon with a red belly and stout yellow bill. The female has a gray head and chest, while the male is emerald green with a white band separating the chest from its red belly. Note the plain dark gray undertail. Found in canopy and middle levels of lowland forest, mainly in the Amazon basin of northern South America but also in eastern Panama, northern Colombia, and western Venezuela. The similar Slaty-tailed Trogon has a red bill and males lack the white chest band seen on Black-tailed Trogons. Listen for slow series of low-pitched “coop” calls.
Indian Robin
Copsychus fulicatus
A nondescript robin; males are primarily black with chestnut bottom feathers, although males in the northern population have brownish upperparts. Males also have a white shoulder patch and a relatively long tail. Females have completely brown upperparts, lack the male’s white shoulder patch, and have grayish-brown underparts. They are generally seen in pairs, foraging on the ground with the tail cocked up. Found in open country, at forest edges, around human habitation, and in scrub lands.
Pectoral Sandpiper
Calidris melanotos
Beefy, medium-sized sandpiper. Brown-toned overall with yellowish legs. Slightly curved bill pale at base. Look for dense breast streaking with abrupt border at white belly. Males are much larger than females, and have a large air sac in the throat which they inflate during breeding display. Plumage and yellow legs might recall Least Sandpiper, but Pectoral is much larger and looks longer-necked. Compare with Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, which is brighter overall and has a more distinct dark cap. Breeds on tundra in the high Arctic. Winters mainly in southern South America, but small numbers also winter in Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. Typically seen in small flocks in muddy marshes or wet grassy habitats, sometimes mixed with other shorebirds. Much less common on open mudflats or beaches. Listen for low, trilled calls.
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