Eastern Woodhaunter

Overview

The eastern woodhaunter, also known as the Amazonian woodhaunter, is a species of bird in the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is classified as Automolus subulatus and is currently assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN, although its population is believed to be decreasing.

Identification

• A fairly large bird measuring 17 to 18 cm in length with a short, heavy bill.
• Mostly dark brownish plumage with golden-buff streaks on the face, crown, and breast, transitioning to a rich tawny brown belly.
• Chestnut lower back, rump, and tail, with rufescent brown wings and slate gray to olive-gray legs.
• A loud song consisting of two to four downslurred whistled notes followed by a low-pitched rattle, and a common call described as a strident 'kirk!' or 'squirp!'.

Habitat

Found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, primarily inhabiting tropical evergreen forests including both várzea and terra firme, as well as older secondary forest. One subspecies specifically occupies lower montane evergreen forest in the Sierra de Lema. The species typically occurs below 1,100 m in elevation, though it reaches higher altitudes locally in Peru and Ecuador.

Diet

The diet includes arthropods and small vertebrates, though it is not known in detail. Foraging is usually conducted singly or within mixed-species feeding flocks in the forest understory to middle levels. The bird searches for prey along large branches and vines by gleaning and probing among dead leaves, epiphytes, and palm fronds, occasionally burrowing into clumps to find food.

Did you know?

The eastern woodhaunter constructs a shallow cup nest at the end of a tunnel it excavates in an earthen bank. The incubation period and time to fledging remain unknown, but both parents are involved in incubating the clutch and provisioning the nestlings.