Rusty-headed Spinetail
Synallaxis fuscorufa
Skulking cloud forest bird endemic to Colombia’s Santa Marta Mountains. Adult has a rusty hood, wings, and tail that contrast with its gray back and belly. Young birds are duller and may show faint barring on the belly. Separated from other similar species in range by its entirely chestnut head and lack of eyebrows and streaking. Shy and often hard to see, usually staying hidden inside foliage at low to middle levels. Frequently sings a strident “pit-pit-pit-chew”; the number of notes is variable.
Identification
The rusty-headed spinetail is 16 to 18 cm (6.3 to 7.1 in) long and weighs 15 to 17 g (0.53 to 0.60 oz). The sexes have the same plumage. Adults are mostly bright reddish rufous. They do have dark lores, a dull grayish olive back, olive flanks, and a somewhat duller rufous tail. Their iris is reddish brown, their maxilla black, their mandible blue-gray, and their legs and feet gray to blue-gray. Juveniles have a much duller crown than adults, and tawny-olive edges on their underparts' feathers and faint barring on their belly. Their irises are light brown and their mandible yellowish pink.
Taxonomy
The rusty-headed spinetail, rufous spinetail (S. unirufa), and black-throated spinetail (S. castanea) are closely related and some authors have treated them as a single species. The rusty-headed spinetail is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Synallaxis fuscorufa
- Authority
- Sclater, PL, 1882
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Furnariidae
- Genus
- Synallaxis
Range and habitat
The rusty-headed spinetail is found only in the isolated Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta of northern Colombia. It occurs only locally, inhabiting the bushy edges and undergrowth of evergreen forest, overgrown clearings, and second-growth scrub in the subtropical and temperate zones of the mountain range. In elevation it mostly ranges between 2,000 and 3,000 m (6,600 and 9,800 ft) but occurs as low as 760 m (2,500 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The rusty-headed spinetail is a year-round resident throughout its range.<p>The rusty-headed spinetail feeds on arthropods. It usually forages in pairs, gleaning prey from foliage and small branches in dense cover up to about 2 m (7 ft) above the ground.<p>The rusty-headed spinetail's breeding season appears to include January to June. Nothing else is known about its breeding biology.<p>The rusty-headed spinetail's song is "3 fast notes, di-di-du". It is often repeated at short intervals for minutes at a time.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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