Creamy-bellied Antwren

Overview

The creamy-bellied antwren (Herpsilochmus motacilloides) is a species of bird in the subfamily Thamnophilinae of the typical antbirds. It is endemic to Peru and was formerly considered a subspecies of the Bahia antwren before being confirmed as a distinct species through phylogenetic analysis.

Identification

• Approximately 12 cm long, weighing between 10.5 and 13 g.
• Males feature a black crown and nape, a white supercilium, a thin black eye-streak, and white ear coverts.
• Wings are black with white tips on the coverts and white edges on the flight feathers.
• Song consists of a rapid, accelerating series of rich notes that rise slightly and then fall, transcribed as "chew-PEE-PEE kree'e'E'E'e'e'e'e'e'rr".

Habitat

Found on the east side of the Peruvian Andes between the departments of Huánuco and Cuzco, at elevations ranging from 900 to 2,100 m. It inhabits the interior and edges of humid montane forest, favouring areas with tall trees and abundant moss and epiphytes.

Diet

The diet includes insects, and the bird usually forages in pairs or as part of a mixed-species feeding flock. It predominantly forages in the outer branches of trees, gleaning prey from leaves.

Did you know?

For much of the twentieth century, the creamy-bellied antwren was treated as a subspecies of the Bahia antwren, with its status as a distinct species only confirmed in the early twenty-first century through phylogenetic and other analyses.