Spectacled Tyrant

Overview

The spectacled tyrant (Hymenops perspicillatus) is a small bird in the tyrant flycatcher family, Tyrannidae. It is native to the southern cone of South America and is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Identification

• Measures 13 to 16 cm in length and weighs 20 to 25 g.
• Adult males are mostly black with white primaries, while females are dark brown with buffy wing bars and streaked underparts.
• Distinctive bare, fleshy, green-tinged yellow skin around the eye in males, which gives the species its English name.
• Both sexes possess a yellow iris and black legs; males have a pale yellow bill, whereas females have a dusky maxilla and brown mandible.
• Males are not highly vocal but produce a shrill "zheeeee" and wing buzz during their descent in the breeding display.

Habitat

Inhabits open landscapes such as marshes, grasslands, and pastures, often near water. The nominate subspecies is found in southeastern and far southern Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina, while subspecies H. p. andinus occurs in Chile and southern Argentina.

Diet

Feeds on insects and other arthropods, foraging usually singly. It chases prey on the ground or sallies from perches such as fence posts, bushes, or reeds.

Did you know?

The species is thought to be polygynous, with male territories frequently containing more than one female, yet the females alone build the nest, incubate the clutch, and provision the nestlings.