Dusky-throated Antshrike
Thamnomanes ardesiacus
Small antshrike of lowland rainforest understory. Males are slaty gray overall. Most individuals, but not all, have a ragged black throat patch. Females are dull brown with buffier belly. Shorter-tailed than similar Bluish-Slate and Cinereous Antshrikes, with less upright posture (songs also differ significantly). Smaller-billed than similar Plain-winged Antshrike. One of the most prominent leaders of understory multi-species flocks.
Identification
The dusky-throated antshrike is 13 to 14 cm (5.1 to 5.5 in) long and weighs 16 to 19 g (0.56 to 0.67 oz). Adult males of the nominate subspecies are mostly darkish gray that is lighter on their belly. They sometimes have a small white patch between their scapulars and often some black feathers on their throat. Their wings and tail are darkish gray with small white tips on the tail feathers. Adult females have dark olive-brown upperparts with more rufous wings and tail. Their throat is buff-white and the rest of their underparts pale buffy ochraceous. Subspecies T. a. obidensis has a shorter tail than the nominate, a black throat, and sometimes some white on the wings.
Taxonomy
The dusky-throated antshrike was described by the English ornithologists Philip Sclater and Osbert Salvin in 1868 and given the binomial name Dysithamnus ardesiacus. Its current genus Thamnomanes was introduced by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis in 1847. The name combines the Ancient Greek words thamnos "bush" and -manēs "fond of". The species was moved to Thamnomanes by the early 21st century.<p>The dusky-throated and saturnine antshrike (T. saturminus) were treated as conspecific by many twentieth century authors and now are considered to form a superspecies. <p>The dusky-throated antshrike has two subspecies, the nominate T. a. ardesiacus (Sclater, PL & Salvin, 1868) and T. a. obidensis (Snethlage, E, 1914).
- Scientific name
- Thamnomanes ardesiacus
- Authority
- (Sclater, PL & Salvin, 1868)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Thamnophilidae
- Genus
- Thamnomanes
Range and habitat
The nominate subspecies of the dusky-throated antshrike is found east of the Andes from south-central and southeastern Colombia south through eastern Ecuador into eastern Peru and northeastern Bolivia and in far western Brazil's Acre state. Subspecies T. a. obidensis is found from eastern Colombia east through eastern and southern Venezuela and the Guianas, and in northern Brazil from the Rio Negro watershed to the Atlantic and south of the Amazon between the rios Tefé and Purus. The species primarily inhabits the understorey of terra firme evergreen forest and occurs less often in várzea forest. In elevation it reaches 1,050 m (3,400 ft) though only as high as 400 m (1,300 ft) in Colombia and is mostly below 500 m (1,600 ft) in Ecuador.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Purple-throated Woodstar
Philodice mitchellii
Woodstars are tiny hummingbirds that fly like bumblebees. Purple-throated is restricted to the west slope of the Andes in Colombia and Ecuador, where it inhabits cloud forest, edges, and second growth from 800–2,000 m. Males have a glittering purple throat, white chest band, fairly long forked tail, and white patches on the sides of the rump. Unlikely to be confused within range. Females are trickier; note the orangey belly with a variable amount of smudgy white in the center (never as extensive as on female White-bellied Woodstar) and the thin whitish line that extends behind the eye and wraps around the neck (not as wide or buffy as on Little Woodstar). Often seen singly feeding in the canopy; visits feeders.
Mouse-colored Antshrike
Thamnophilus murinus
Medium-sized inconspicuous antbird of lowland rainforest. Note gray (male) and brown (female) plumage, large bill, and lack of strong pattern on wing coverts. Found inside forest, often in pairs; may follow mixed-species flocks but often encountered alone, foraging deliberately in the mid-story or lower. Heard far more often than seen; song is a distinctive, short series of complaining notes with a characteristic doubled note at the end. The song is slower and more inflected than the song of Plain-winged Antshrike.
Iringa Akalat
Sheppardia lowei
A rather small, demure understory denizen resembling a cross between a robin and a flycatcher. Mostly dull brown with a buffy throat and a short eyebrow. Juvenile is more mottled. A highly local bird found singly and in pairs in dry and wet primary and secondary montane forest in a narrow range along the Udzungwa and Livingstone mountains escarpment between 1350 and 2500 meters of elevation. Sits for long periods, sallying to catch insect prey, or forages on the ground, often in the company of ants and other ant-following birds. Sings a variable medley of quavering high-pitched notes, “tseet-teet-tsereet-teeet-tsureet,” that is sweet without being tuneful. Calls include an invariable piping “wheet” uttered once a second. Alarm call is a grating “drrrzzt, drrrt, drrrt.” May be mistaken for a flycatcher, but its furtive nature and preference for thick understory are unique within its range.
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