Bolivian Tapaculo
Scytalopus bolivianus
Small, mouse-like bird found mainly in the Bolivian Andes. Despite the name, it also ranges over the border into far southeastern Peru, but does not reach Manu. The small white patch on the crown is distinctive, but can be hard to see from some angles and may be absent on some birds. Plumage is otherwise mostly grayish-brown with rusty barring on the lower underparts. Adult males are darker than females and juveniles. Does not occur together with the similar White-crowned Tapaculo. Inhabits the understory of humid forest, and usually very hard to see. Vocalizations include a long, very rapid trill and a slower series of sharp chips.
Identification
The Bolivian tapaculo is 12 cm (4.7 in) long. Males weigh 17 to 22 g (0.60 to 0.78 oz) and one female weighed 19.5 g (0.69 oz). The male is mostly dark gray with reddish brown flanks, vent, and crissum (the area around the cloaca). It has a variable amount of white on the crown of the head. The female is paler gray washed with brown above with a black-barred brown belly. The juvenile is similar to the female.
Taxonomy
The Bolivian tapaculo was formerly considered a subspecies of rufous-vented tapaculo (Scytalopus femoralis) but was separated based principally on differences in their vocalizations.
- Scientific name
- Scytalopus bolivianus
- Authority
- Allen, JA, 1889
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Rhinocryptidae
- Genus
- Scytalopus
Range and habitat
The Bolivian tapaculo is found from Puno Province in southeastern Peru into Bolivia as far as Chuquisaca Department. It inhabits dense undergrowth in humid broadleaf forest. Its primary elevational range is 1,000 to 2,300 m (3,300 to 7,500 ft) but it can be found as high as 2,850 m (9,350 ft) in a few locations.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
No information is available on the Bolivian tapaculo's feeding or breeding phenologies. Its song is a trill up to 15 seconds long [1] and its alarm call is rendered "kekekeke" [2]. The female is thought to utter a high-pitched "brzk" [3].
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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