The ''stipplethroats'' are a South and Central American

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 ...

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 ...

birds in the antbird family Thamnophilidae. They were previously included in the genus ''

Myrmotherula ''Myrmotherula'' is a genus of insectivorous passerine birds in the antbird, antbird family, Thamnophilidae. These are all small antbirds, measuring . The genus was erected by the English zoologist Philip Sclater in 1858. The type species is the ...

'' as the "stipple-throated group".

Characteristics

Molecular studies show that the genus ''

'' as then defined was

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage of organisms or other evolving elements that is of mixed evolutionary origin. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as homoplasies, which are explained as a result of converg ...

. The stipple-throated members form a clade that is not a

sister clade In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and t ...

to any of the remaining members, and the genus ''Epinecrophylla'' has been erected to accommodate them. The stipple-throated species have a black and white (or buffy-white) stippled throat in one or both of the sexes. They also have a relatively long, plain-coloured tail. That this clade is distinct from the remaining members of the ''Myrmotherula'' is reinforced by differences in song, foraging behaviour and nest-building.

Ecology

Members of the genus ''Epinecrophylla'' tend to specialise in extracting insects and spiders from dangling clusters of dead leaves, foraging in this way for more than 75% of the time. While foraging they have stereotyped methods of manipulating the leaves with their beaks and feet; by way of contrast, members of ''Myrmotherula'' tend to hunt for prey on the surfaces of leaves, stems, twigs, mosses and vines, and none of those birds specialises in and manipulates dead leaves, although they do sometimes probe them with their beaks. Another characteristic of ''Epinecrophylla'' seems to be the dome-shaped nest with side or oblique entrance; three of the species have this characteristic, while the nesting behaviours of the other members of the genus are not known.

Species

The genus contains eight species: *

Checker-throated stipplethroat The checker-throated stipplethroat (''Epinecrophylla fulviventris''), previously called fulvous-bellied antwren or checker-throated antwren, is a small passerine bird in subfamily Thamnophilinae of family Thamnophilidae, the "typical antbirds". ...

(''Epinecrophylla fulviventris'') *

Brown-bellied stipplethroat The brown-bellied stipplethroat, previously called brown-bellied antwrenRemsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 26 November 2023. ...

(''Epinecrophylla gutturalis'') *

White-eyed stipplethroat The white-eyed stipplethroat, previously called white-eyed antwrenRemsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 26 November 2023. A cla ...

(''Epinecrophylla leucophthalma'') *

Rufous-backed stipplethroat The rufous-backed stipplethroat (''Epinecrophylla haematonota''), also called the rufous-backed antwren or the stipple-throated antwren, is a species of bird in the family Thamnophilidae. It is found in southeastern Colombia and southern Venezuel ...

(''Epinecrophylla haematonota'') * Rio Madeira stipplethroat (''Epinecrophylla amazonica'') * Foothill stipplethroat (''Epinecrophylla spodionota'') * Ornate stipplethroat (''Epinecrophylla ornata'') * Rufous-tailed stipplethroat (''Epinecrophylla erythrura'')

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q946515