Spot-crowned Woodcreeper

Overview

The spot-crowned woodcreeper (Lepidocolaptes affinis) is a passerine bird in the subfamily Dendrocolaptinae of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is distributed across Middle America from Mexico to Panama and is currently assessed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Identification

• Slim, medium-sized bird measuring 19 to 22 cm in length, with a slim, moderately decurved bill.
• Distinctive spotted or diamond-patterned crown and nape in buffy colours, which helps distinguish it from the streak-headed woodcreeper.
• Underparts are olive-brown with wide black-edged buffy streaks, while the rump is rufous-cinnamon and wings and tail are rufous-chestnut.
• Northern subspecies sing a high-pitched rising phrase of typically three notes ('tseeu-tsee-tsee'), whereas the southern subspecies produce a long nasal note followed by a fast trill.

Habitat

Found in both humid and dry forests, mostly in highland areas, including evergreen montane forests, cloud forests, and drier deciduous, oak, and pine woodlands. It inhabits the interior of primary forests but is more common at edges and in mature secondary forests, as well as plantations and tree-filled pastures. Elevation typically ranges between 1,000 and 3,500 m, though it can be found as low as 400 m during the non-breeding season.

Diet

The diet consists almost entirely of arthropods, with beetles and their egg cases being a major component. It typically forages singly or in pairs, often joining mixed-species feeding flocks or following army ant swarms. It hitches up trunks and branches in a spiral, gleaning prey from epiphytes, probing bark crevices, and occasionally flaking off bark to expose hidden insects.

Did you know?

The species is less dependent on continuous forest than many other woodcreepers, making it only moderately sensitive to human disturbance despite requiring at least patches of forest nearby.