Black-headed Saltator

Overview

The black-headed saltator (Saltator atriceps) is a species of songbird in the family Thraupidae. It is found across a range stretching from Mexico to Panama and is classified as a species of Least Concern by the IUCN Red List.

Identification

• Medium-sized bird measuring 25.5 to 28 cm in length, with a thick black bill, reddish-brown iris, and dark legs.
• Distinctive plumage features a mostly black head with a thin white and grey supercilium, bright yellowish olive-green upperparts, and an ash-grey underbelly.
• Vocalisations include loud, scratchy notes ending in a prolonged whistle and sharp, smacking barks or chortling chatters.

Habitat

This species inhabits tropical and lower subtropical landscapes, including forest edges, secondary forest, plantations, scrub, and gardens. It occurs from sea level to elevations of up to 1,900 m in northern Central America, though its distribution is disjunct with six subspecies across the region.

Diet

Diet includes fruits, seeds, and insects, along with smaller amounts of flowers and buds. The bird forages at all levels of its habitat, typically in small groups, and gleans food from vegetation.

Did you know?

While logging and habitat fragmentation are usually detrimental to forest-dwelling species, the black-headed saltator thrives in these conditions as a forest edge species; at Palenque, Chiapas, increased fragmentation of rainforest actually led to a population increase.