Chestnut-shouldered Antwren

Overview

The chestnut-shouldered antwren (Euchrepomis humeralis) is a species of bird in the family Thamnophilidae, commonly known as the typical antbirds. It is a monotypic species classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, though its population is believed to be decreasing.

Identification

• Size: Small, measuring 9.5 to 11 cm in length and weighing approximately 7 to 8 g.
• Plumage (Male): Features a whitish supercilium, a thin dark eyeline on a pale gray face, and a black crown. The back is greenish olive, with a rufous-chestnut rump and pale yellow belly.
• Plumage (Female): Possesses an olive-brown crown, nape, and eyeline with a pale gray supercilium, and dark olive-brown wings that show at most a trace of chestnut at the bend.
• Song: Emits a very high, thin, slightly descending and gradually accelerating 'fuh-fuh-weet-weet-d-rrr' rattle.

Habitat

This species inhabits the subcanopy and canopy of terra firme and drier floodplain tropical evergreen forests. Its range extends from eastern Ecuador and eastern Peru south of the Rio Napo, through northwestern Bolivia, and into eastern Brazil within northern Rondônia and Amazonas state as far as the Rio Madeira.

Diet

The chestnut-shouldered antwren feeds on arthropods, foraging almost entirely in the forest canopy by acrobatically gleaning prey from leaves and the ends of branches. It typically hunts in pairs or small family groups that often join mixed-species feeding flocks.

Did you know?

Although it was originally described in 1880 under the name Terenura humeralis, the species was not moved to its current genus, Euchrepomis, until 2012 following phylogenetic analysis.