Band-tailed Antshrike
Thamnophilus melanothorax
A rarely encountered large antshrike. Both sexes are distinctive; male is mostly black with a broad white tail band, whereas female is mostly rusty-colored with a black face and throat. Pairs inhabit disturbed areas in forested regions and are especially fond of dense vine tangles. May ascend into midstory but usually remains in undergrowth where they are difficult to see. Song is a slow series of hollow notes, much slower than other antshrikes in range; also harsh churring in alarm. Range incompletely known.
Identification
The band-tailed antshrike is 16 to 17 cm (6.3 to 6.7 in) long; one individual weighed 31 g (1.1 oz). Members of genus Thamnophilus are largish members of the antbird family; all have stout bills with a hook like those of true shrikes. Adult males are almost entirely black except for a hidden white patch between the scapulars, small white spots on the wing coverts, and the eponymous wide white band at the end of the tail. Adult females have a bright deep rufous crown, upperparts, wings, and tail. Their face, throat, and breast are black. The rest of their underparts are gray with a reddish brown cast on the flanks and crissum.
Taxonomy
The band-tailed antshrike was described by the English zoologist Philip Sclater in 1857 and given the binomial name Thamnophilus melanothorax. It was subsequently placed in the genus Sakesphorus. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2007 found that Sakesphorus was polyphyletic and that three species including the band-tailed antshrike were embedded within a clade containing members of Thamnophilus. The band-tailed antshrike was therefore moved back to its original genus.<p>The band-tailed antshrike is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Thamnophilus melanothorax
- Authority
- Sclater, PL, 1857
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Thamnophilidae
- Genus
- Thamnophilus
Range and habitat
The band-tailed antshrike is found from southern Guyana across Suriname and French Guiana and into northeastern Brazil's Amapá state; there is also one good sight record near Manaus in Brazil's Amazonas state. It primarily inhabits the understorey of evergreen forest though it also occurs higher into the mid-storey. It favors dense vines and other vegetation growing in gaps made by fallen trees and abandoned human-made openings. It also occurs in swampy depressions and in dense riverside thickets. In elevation it ranges from near sea level to 550 m (1,800 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The band-tailed antshrike is thought to be a year-round resident throughout its range.<p>The band-tailed antshrike's diet is not well known but is assumed to be insects and other small arthropods. It forages singly or in pairs and seldom as part of a mixed-species feeding flock. It forages mostly in dense cover on and near the ground up to about 10 m (35 ft) high. It feeds by gleaning from vegetation, vines, branches, and the ground.<p>Nothing is known about the band-tailed antshrike's breeding biology.<p>The band-tailed antshrike's song is a "slow, slightly accelerating series of 7-9 low, hollow 'ah' notes". Its call is "a muffled, nasal growl, sometimes doubled".
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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