White-lored Euphonia

Overview

The white-lored euphonia, also known as the golden-bellied euphonia (Euphonia chrysopasta), is a species of small songbird found throughout mainland South America. Classified as Least Concern by the IUCN, this species exhibits an extremely large distribution across the continent, excluding Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

Identification

• Measures 9 to 10 cm in length and weighs between 11 and 16 g, possessing a notably thick bill and a dark brown iris.
• Adult males display an olive forecrown and grayish crown, with ashy whitish lores, chin, and cheeks contrasting against an olive-green face and mostly yellow underparts.
• Females are duller with less white on the face and mostly gray underparts featuring olive-yellow sides, while both sexes have a blackish bill with a grayish mandible base and horn-gray legs.
• Males sing from high perches with a jumble of notes such as 'chit', 'sit', and 'spitz', often bobbing their bodies and twitching their tails.

Habitat

This species inhabits the canopy and edges of humid várzea and terra firme forests, as well as shady clearings and mature secondary forest. Its range extends across most of South America, with specific subspecies distributions covering areas from southeastern Colombia and Venezuela across to the Guianas and Brazil.

Diet

Primarily feeding on the fruits of mistletoe and other small fruits, the white-lored euphonia also consumes small numbers of insects. It forages mostly in pairs, occasionally singly or in small groups, and frequently joins mixed-species feeding flocks within the canopy or at forest edges.

Did you know?

Both sexes participate in constructing a football-shaped nest with a side entrance, which is typically built from plant materials and placed high up in clumps of epiphytes, moss, or ferns on tree limbs.