Kinglet Manakin

Machaeropterus regulus

Chunky little, short-tailed bird of lowland and foothill forest. Male is distinctive with bright red crown and bold white stripes on reddish belly. Female lacks red crown but shows faint streaking on sides unlike any other manakin. Inconspicuous; elaborate display dance infrequently seen. Found in the lower to middle levels of forest. Listen for its strong “chew” call.

Taxonomy

Scientific name
Machaeropterus regulus
Authority
(Hahn, 1819)
Order
Passeriformes
Family
Pipridae
Genus
Machaeropterus

Range and habitat

Migration
Resident species

Conservation

Population trend
declining

Photos

Distribution

Bird Calls

Other Birds

Splendid Astrapia

Splendid Astrapia

Astrapia splendidissima

A long-tailed bird of montane forest. Black back and white base to the upper tail, more extensive in the male. Male has iridescent blue-green underparts, head and bib with rufous breast band and thin, rufous stripe down the side of the neck. Female has a black head and a barred belly. Feeds on fruit and searches for insects on mossy branches and epiphytes. Range of Ribbon-tailed Astrapia may just meet, but Splendid Astrapia female has white in the base of the upper tail. Call, a clicking sound.

Barred Fruiteater

Barred Fruiteater

Pipreola arcuata

Chunky, short-tailed, flat-headed bird patterned in green and black. Male has black head and breast, pale yellow belly with bold dark barring, and mossy green upperparts with bold pale spotting on the wing. Female is similar but has a green head with barring all the way up the throat. On both sexes, note red bill and legs and pale eye varying from orange to gray to whitish. Fairly common in stunted forested habitats in the upper subtropical and temperate zone in the Andes. Sluggish; perches quietly in the middle levels of the forest, sometimes following a mixed-species flock. May be seen singly or in pairs, but several can gather around a fruiting tree. Listen for super high-pitched calls.

White-lored Gnatcatcher

White-lored Gnatcatcher

Polioptila albiloris

Tiny gray and white bird with cocked tail. Common in tropical dry forest and scrub of Pacific lowlands. Male has a black cap, solid in breeding season, but with narrow white eyebrow in non-breeding season. Female has gray cap with narrow white eyebrow year-round. Told from Blue-gray Gnatcatcher by face pattern: Blue-gray has a white eyering, not a white brow.

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