The dusky-green oropendola (''Psarocolius atrovirens'') is a species of bird in the family

Icteridae Icterids () or New World blackbirds make up a family, the Icteridae (), of small to medium-sized, often colorful, New World passerine birds. Most species have black as a predominant plumage color, often enlivened by yellow, orange, or red. The ...

(New World blackbirds). It is found on the eastern slope of the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

and

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 ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are subtropical or tropical moist

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...

s and heavily degraded former forest.

Description

The male dusky-green oropendola grows to a length of about and the female of about . The sexes are similar in

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines * Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts * Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies ...

, the plumage being mainly dark brownish-green or blackish-green, with a rufous-brown rump and crissum (the undertail

coverts A covert feather or tectrix on a bird is one of a set of feathers, called coverts (or ''tectrices''), which, as the name implies, cover other feathers. The coverts help to smooth airflow over the wings and tail. Ear coverts The ear coverts are sm ...

surrounding the

cloaca In animal anatomy, a cloaca ( ), plural cloacae ( or ), is the posterior orifice that serves as the only opening for the digestive, reproductive, and urinary tracts (if present) of many vertebrate animals. All amphibians, reptiles and birds, a ...

). The beak is greenish-white, there may be a few yellow feathers on the head, and the iris is brown or blue, the latter colour perhaps being in older birds. The

russet-backed oropendola The russet-backed oropendola (''Psarocolius angustifrons'') is a species of bird in the family Icteridae. It is found in wooded habitats in the highlands of the northern and central Andes and the Venezuelan Coastal Range, and in lowlands of the w ...

(''Psarocolius angustifrons''), which partly shares the same range, has more rufous upper parts, a yellow forehead and olive-green head which contrasts with its back and wings.

Distribution and habitat

The dusky-green oropendola occurs on the east side of the

Andes Mountains The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the List of mountain ranges#Mountain ranges by length, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range i ...

, its range extending from

Huánuco Province The Huánuco Province is one of 11 provinces of the Huánuco Region in Peru. The capital of the province is the city of Huánuco. History Geography Some of the highest mountains of the province are listed below: Political division The p ...

in central Peru to

Santa Cruz Department Santa Cruz () is the largest of the nine constituent departments of Bolivia, occupying about one-third (33.74%) of the country's territory. With an area of , it is slightly smaller than Japan or the US state of Montana. It is located in the e ...

in Bolivia. It occurs in montane forests and near their edges at altitudes of between above sea level, mostly at greater elevations than the russet-backed oropendola.

Ecology

The diet of this bird probably consists of

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 (including

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...

s),

arthropod Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...

s, small vertebrates,

nectar Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists ...

and fruits. The breeding season is between October and December. The birds breed colonially but colony sizes are small.

Status

The dusky-green oropendola is a common species with a very wide range. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has classified it as being of "

least concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

" because, although its forest habitat is being gradually reduced, any decline in the numbers of birds is not at a sufficient rate to justify putting the bird in a more threatened category.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1305310

dusky-green oropendola The dusky-green oropendola (''Psarocolius atrovirens'') is a species of bird in the family Icteridae (New World blackbirds). It is found on the eastern slope of the Andes in Bolivia and Peru. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist ...

Birds of the Puna grassland Birds of the Yungas

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot