White-crowned Tapaculo

Overview

The white-crowned tapaculo is a small bird in the family Rhinocryptidae, found across parts of South America including Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. Previously considered a subspecies of the rufous-vented tapaculo, it was separated based on differences in vocalisations, though some populations may still represent distinct species.

Identification

• Males of the nominate subspecies are mostly blackish above with slightly lighter underparts, a white crown, and reddish-brown flanks and vent with black bars.
• The female is paler and washed with brown above, with more reddish flanks; juveniles are rust-coloured and heavily barred.
• Males weigh between 24.6 and 32.5 g, while a single female weighed 25.3 g; the bird is approximately 12 cm long.
• Songs vary significantly by population and have prompted taxonomic debate, but no specific acoustic description is provided in the source material.

Habitat

The white-crowned tapaculo inhabits the undergrowth in the interior and edges of humid montane forest, ranging in elevation from 850 to 1,900 m. Its range extends from western Venezuela to central Peru, with subspecies distributed in specific Andean regions including the Sierra de Perijá and the eastern and central Andes of Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.

Diet

The white-crowned tapaculo forages on and near the ground for insects.

Did you know?

Despite its large range and stable population status as Least Concern, almost nothing is known about its breeding phenology, with only a single juvenile collected in January and one adult with enlarged gonads in November, both in Ecuador.