Streaked Xenops
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| Xenops rutilans Temminck, 1821 |
The Streaked Xenops, Xenops rutilans, is a passerine bird which breeds in the tropical New World from Costa Rica and Trinidad south to Bolivia and northern Argentina.
It is found in wet forests in foothills and mountains between 800-2,200 m altitude.
It is a member of the South American bird family Furnariidae, a group in which many species build elaborate clay nests, giving rise to the English name for the family of "ovenbirds".
However, Streaked Xenops simply places a few stems and roots in a hole 1.5-4.5 m high in a tree. The normal clutch is two white eggs, incubated by both sexes. This species is a resident breeder in forest habitats.
The Streaked Xenops is typically 12.2 cm long, weighs 12.6 g, and has a stubby wedge-shaped bill. The head is dark brown with a whitish supercilium and malar stripe. The upperparts are brown, becoming rufous on the tail and rump, and there is a buff bar on the darker brown wings. The underparts are white-streaked olive brown. Sexes are similar.
The Streaked Xenops is often difficult to see as it forages for insects, including the larvae of wood-boring beetles, on bark, rotting stumps or bare twigs. It moves in all directions on the trunk like a treecreeper, but does not use its tail as a prop. It may be located by its chattering call, a series of 5 or 6 metallic zeet notes. It regularly joins mixed-species feeding flocks.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Xenops rutilans. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
- ffrench, Richard (1991). A Guide to the Birds of Trinidad and Tobago, 2nd edition, Comstock Publishing. ISBN 0-8014-9792-2.
- Hilty, Steven L (2003). Birds of Venezuela. London: Christopher Helm. ISBN 0-7136-6418-5.
[edit] External links
- Streaked Xenops videos on the Internet Bird Collection
