The chestnut-capped brushfinch (''Arremon brunneinucha''), is a
Neotropical
The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone.
Definition
In bioge ...
passerine
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by t ...
bird in the New World sparrow
Passerellidae
New World sparrows are a group of mainly New World passerine birds, forming the family Passerellidae. They are seed-eating birds with conical bills, brown or gray in color, and many species have distinctive head patterns.
Although they share t ...
Until recently, it was generally placed in the
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
''
Buarremon'',
while it occasionally has been placed in ''
Atlapetes
''Atlapetes'' is a genus of birds in the New World sparrow family Passerellidae. The species are mainly found in montane forest from Mexico to northwestern Argentina.
Taxonomy and species
The genus ''Atlapetes'' was introduced in 1831 by the Ger ...
''.
Description
The chestnut-capped brushfinch is a large, robust, mainly terrestrial species, 19 cm long and weighing 45 g. It has a long slender bill and large feet and legs. The adult has a distinctive head pattern, with a yellow-edged chestnut crown and nape, black forehead and head sides, white spots in the centre and each side of the forehead, and a white throat which is often puffed up when the bird is excited. The upperparts are dark olive, with darker wings. The white central breast is separated from the white throat by a black band. The breast sides are grey, and the flanks and lower belly are olive-green. Young birds have a sooty-brown cap, sooty face and olive-brown upperparts, throat and breast.
The chestnut-capped brushfinch has a thin ''pink'' call and a very high-pitched ''psssst''. The male's song consists of a mixture of whistles and sharper notes.
[
]
Distribution and habitat
This is a common bird in the undergrowth of wet mountain forests, second growth, and ravines at from 900 m to 250 m altitude. It breeds in highlands from central Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
to south-eastern Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal
, national_motto = "Fi ...
.
Behaviour
The nest, built by the female, is a large cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay, ...
of plant material placed less than 2.5 m up in a shrub or small tree in dense scrub or a ravine. The typical clutch is two glossy, unmarked white or pale blue eggs,[ which are incubated by the female alone for 12–14 days before hatching.
The chestnut-capped brushfinch feeds on ]insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...
s and spider
Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...
s extracted from the leaf litter with its bill, and will also pick berries and invertebrate prey from low bushes. It is seen in pairs or family parties.[
]
References
Further reading
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{{Taxonbar, from=Q2226813
chestnut-capped brush finch
Birds of Central America
chestnut-capped brush finch