Line-fronted Canastero
Asthenes urubambensis
Small wren-like bird with a long, pointed tail. Warm reddish brown with extensive white streaking on the undersides and face; also look for its thin white eyebrow and small reddish-orange throat patch. Forages singly or in pairs on the ground and in shrubs in low forest near the treeline; particularly likes Polylepis forests. Compared to similar streaked canasteros, which are mostly found in more open, grassy habitats without trees, look for its white eyebrow and unmarked back and wings.
Identification
The line-fronted canastero is 17 to 18 cm (6.7 to 7.1 in) long and weighs 16 to 20 g (0.56 to 0.71 oz). It is a large canastero with a narrow spiny tail. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a conspicuous whitish supercilium that widens past the eye on an otherwise light brownish face with narrow dark brown streaks. Their forehead ("front") is dark brown with well-defined golden-brown stripes that fade on the brown crown. Their hindneck and upperparts are rich brown, the former with blurry light brown streaks that fade on the upper back and pale streaks on the uppertail coverts. Their wings are rich brown with dark fuscous tips on the flight feathers. Their tail is rich brown. Their chin is pale tawny to dark rufous, their upper throat tawny to orange-rufous, and their lower throat light buff-brown with dark brown streaks. Their breast is a paler buff-brown than the throat with wide dark brown and pale buff streaks that fade onto the pale buff belly. Their flanks and undertail coverts are rich brown; the latter have pale streaks. Their iris is brown, their maxilla black to gray-horn, their mandible silver-gray to pinkish, and their legs and feet olive to gray. Subspecies A. u. huallagae has slightly darker and redder upperparts than the nominate, with streaks mostly on the forehead and hindneck. It also has more and whiter streaks on the belly and flanks.
Taxonomy
The line-fronted canastero has two subspecies, the nominate A. u. urubambensis (Chapman, 1919) and A. u. huallagae (Zimmer 1924).
- Scientific name
- Asthenes urubambensis
- Authority
- (Chapman, 1919)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Furnariidae
- Genus
- Asthenes
Range and habitat
The line-fronted canastero has a disjunct distribution. Subspecies A. u. huallagae is found in the Andes of central Peru between the departments of San Martín and Pasco. The nominate subspecies is found in the Andes from the departments of Cuzco and Puno in Peru south into western Bolivia as far as La Paz and Cochabamba departments. The species inhabits the ecotone between timberline and páramo grasslands, a landscape characterized by mossy scrub, Gynoxys and Ribes bushes, and groves of Polylepis trees. In elevation it ranges between 3,050 and 4,300 m (10,000 and 14,100 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Rufous-crowned Sparrow
Aimophila ruficeps
Fairly large grayish-brown sparrow of scrubby, arid hillsides. Look for rufous crown, rufous stripe behind eye, thin white eyering, and white mustache bordered by black. Otherwise plain grayish below with no streaks. Found on or near the ground, especially on dry slopes with scattered shrubs. Often heard before it is seen, so listen for its song, a descending jumble of husky notes. Also gives a nasal call, often in a rapid series. Compare with Oaxaca Sparrow in Mexico.
Boat-billed Heron
Cochlearius cochlearius
Bizarre nocturnal heron of mangroves and freshwater marshes in tropical lowlands; spends the daytime roosting in trees, often in loose groups. Comes out at night to feed along the edge of lakes and rivers. Easily identified by huge ‘boat bill’ and big brown eyes. Adult has black crown, pinkish breast, and silvery gray back; immature pattern similar, but plumage duller and browner overall.
Gorgeous Sunbird
Cinnyris melanogastrus
A slim, long-billed sunbird in which breeding males and females are very different. Breeding males are mostly dark green with a red-and-yellow band across the underparts, and a black belly. Females are plain, with gray-brown upperparts and white underparts tinged with yellow. Found in a wide variety of open habitats including savanna, woodland, and gardens. Similar to Black-bellied Sunbird, but breeding males are separated by the more extensive yellow in their belly band, and females by their reduced streaking below. Little or no range overlap with Beautiful Sunbird, but if in doubt the black belly of breeding male Gorgeous Sunbird will identify it. The common call is a quiet chipping, and the song is a high-pitched jumble typical of sunbirds.
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