Chestnut-naped Antpitta

Overview

The chestnut-naped antpitta (Grallaria nuchalis) is a species of bird in the family Grallariidae, native to the Andes of Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. It is a plump, round antbird with a stout bill and a very short tail, generally considered a species of Least Concern.

Identification

• Length of 19.5 to 21 cm and a weight of 104 to 122 g, with no sexual differences in plumage.
• The nominate subspecies features a dark chestnut crown, rufous-chestnut hindcrown, nape, and face, along with ashy gray underparts that are darkest on the throat.
• A patch of bare white skin behind the eye, combined with a gray iris, black bill, and pale blue-gray legs.
• A distinctive song consisting of 4-7 well-enunciated whistled notes, such as 'keeu, kew-kew-kew k-wheeeei?', often heard at dawn and dusk.

Habitat

This species inhabits temperate to humid montane forest between 2,000 and 3,000 m in elevation, almost entirely within or near dense bamboo stands. Its distribution is disjunct, with the nominate subspecies found on the eastern slope of the Andes from Ecuador into Peru, and other subspecies occupying the western slopes in Colombia and Ecuador.

Diet

The diet consists of insects and other invertebrates, though specific foraging behaviors are not fully detailed. It is primarily terrestrial, foraging by hopping on the ground, usually deep within the bamboo, with most sightings occurring along forest trails in early dawn.

Did you know?

The only known nest was a large cup constructed primarily of bamboo leaves with a few small sticks and moss, situated approximately 3 m above the ground in a bamboo thicket.