Fenwick's antpitta
The Urrao antpitta (Grallaria urraoensis ), also known as Fenwick's antpitta, is a highly threatened species of bird found in the understory of cloud forest in the Andean highlands of Colombia. The first published description used the scientific name Grallaria fenwickorum (and English name Fenwick's antpitta); shortly afterward, a second description using the name Grallaria urraoensis was published. The editors of the latter recognized that the name likely was a junior synonym, but others have questioned the validity of the first description, and various authorities, including the International Ornithological Congress, have adopted G. urraoensis. Antioquia antpitta has been suggested as an English-language name compromise.
An insectivore is a carnivorous plant or animal that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of e...
Myrmecophagy is a feeding behavior defined by the consumption of termites or ants, particularly as pertaining to those animal species whose diets a...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe bird most closely resembles the brown-banded antpitta, which is endemic to the Cordillera Central of Colombia, but it has a slate-grey breast and lacks the brown flanks and breast band of the other species. Measurements of the living bird from which Barrera and Bartels' holotype material was derived, as well as of the two collected specimens, show weights ranging from 53.5 to 57.4 grams (1.89 to 2.02 oz), flat wing chords of 95–99 millimetres (3.7–3.9 in), tail lengths of 57–63 millimetres (2.2–2.5 in), and tarsus lengths of 44.5–49.9 millimetres (1.75–1.96 in). The sexes are similar in appearance, as with most other antpittas.
A captured fledgling was covered with dark grey down with brown edges above and was buff below. Its feet were dark pink; its bill was black above and orange below, with conspicuous red-orange edges. A captured juvenile looked scaled, with patches of chestnut-edged black down intermixed with grey feathers on much of its body, and a buff belly. Its bill resembled that of the fledgling.
The song comprises three notes of increasing length and frequency. The birds sing more early in the year. The call is a single note, higher-pitched than the song, which rises, falls, and rises again. The birds often give it in response to loud noises and playbacks of its vocalisations. They call more later in the year. Both song and call resemble those of the brown-banded antpitta, but Fenwick's antpitta's notes are shorter and lower-pitched, and those of its song are separated by wider intervals.
The known distribution of the bird is limited to the Urrao municipality in and near the Colibrí del Sol Bird Reserve, a 28.52 square kilometres (11.01 sq mi) reserve on the south-eastern slope of the Páramo del Sol massif, at the northern end of the Cordillera Occidental of Colombia, and some 55 kilometres (34 mi) west of Medellín, Colombia's second largest city. The massif has over 27 square kilometres (10 sq mi) of relatively intact páramo and Polylepis woodland, containing more such habitat than all the other páramos in the region combined. There the bird is restricted to upper montane cloud forest dominated by Colombian oak, at an altitude of 2,600 to 3,300 metres (8,500 to 10,800 ft) above sea level, where most territories contain Chusquea bamboo thickets. It is suspected that its range may be larger than currently known, but so far surveys have failed to confirm this.
The species exhibits behaviour typical of other members of its genus; it is a shy, terrestrial forager for insects (especially beetles) in the leaf-litter within the forest understorey. It ascends to higher perches (up to 1.5 m above the ground) to sing, and is most active and vocal in the hours following dawn and prior to dusk.
It usually occurs in pairs, less often singly, and one group of three has been observed.
The males captured in February and March had enlarged testes, typical of breeding birds. The fledgling and an adult with old brood patches were observed in June. These data and song activity from February to April (a dry season) suggest that the breeding season begins early in the year, possibly as early as January, and extends for several months.
As in other Grallaria species, the fledgling was less developed than those of most passerines, and both parents fed it earthworms.
The bird has a very restricted known range, limited to the Colibrí del Sol reserve and its immediate vicinity, while previous surveys in similar habitat in the region have failed to record the species. Moreover, habitat used by the bird has been extensively cleared for pasture, and the area is rich in minerals. The known population of 24 territories has an estimated area of 5.8 square kilometres (2.2 sq mi), giving a conservative global population estimate of 57–156 territories. Both articles on the new species propose that the IUCN classify Fenwick's antpitta as critically endangered, and this will be followed in the forthcoming 2011 edition of the BirdLife International list, which is the authority used for birds by the IUCN. Although it is protected in the Colibrí del Sol reserve, it needs further protective measures. The single bird or pair that was known from outside the reserve has not been recorded since mid-2010 and appears to have disappeared.
