Chaco Sparrow
Rhynchospiza strigiceps
Small sparrow found in lowlands and foothills from northern Argentina to southeastern Bolivia. It has chestnut and gray stripes on the head and faint black and white mustache streaks. Similar to Yungas Sparrow, with which it was formerly lumped as Stripe-capped Sparrow, but is smaller with less black between the eye and bill, browner wings, and different voice. Inhabits open, grassy habitats with scattered trees and low scrub. Song is a fairly rapid series of sweet whistles, repeated every few seconds.
Identification
The Chaco sparrow is the smaller of the two former subspecies that were split. Its upper parts are light brown with darker streaks and varying amounts of rust and gray. It is pale gray below blending to buff on the flanks. The head is gray with cinnamon crown and postocular stripes, pale lores, and a black moustachial stripe.
Taxonomy
The current Chaco sparrow was originally one of two subspecies of the then stripe-capped sparrow (Aimophila strigiceps). A 2009 publication restored the genus Rhynchospiza and moved A. stolzmanii and A. strigiceps to that genus. A 2019 publication split Rhynchospiza dabbenei from R. strigiceps. Based on the 2019 publication, in June 2020 the South American Classification Committee (SACC) of the American Ornithological Society (AOS) split R. dabbenei as the Yungas sparrow and renamed R. strigiceps sensu stricto as the Chaco sparrow. The International Ornithological Congress (IOC) followed suit in January 2021.
- Scientific name
- Rhynchospiza strigiceps
- Authority
- (Gould, 1839)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Passerellidae
- Genus
- Rhynchospiza
Range and habitat
The Chaco sparrow is a partial migrant found in the Gran Chaco region from south-central Paraguay into north-central Argentina. This low elevation biome (up to 1,000 m (3,300 ft)) is characterized by subtropical and tropical dry forests and shrubland.
- Migration
- Vertical migration
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Bird Calls
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