The equatorial antpitta (''Grallaria saturata'') is a species of bird in the family Grallariidae. It is found is Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.

Taxonomy and systematics

The equatorial antpitta has a complicated taxonomic history. It was originally described in 1918 as the

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

''G. rufula saturata'' of the

rufous antpitta The rufous antpitta (''Grallaria rufula'') was a species of bird in the family Antpitta, Grallariidae that, in 2020, was found to be a species complex made up of 13 visually similar, but distinct species. The members of the complex are: * Peri ...

.Greeney, H. F., G. M. Kirwan, and A. J. Spencer (2024). Equatorial Antpitta (''Grallaria saturata''), version 2.0. In Birds of the World (M. G. Smith and S. M. Billerman, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.equant1.02 retrieved 9 September 2024 It later lost its separate identity by being merged into ''G. rufula''. However, a study published in 2020 resurrected the synonymized subspecies and promoted it to species rank using genetic evidence and analysis of vocalizations. Another 2020 publication confirmed its placement in the rufous antpitta complex. The International Ornithological Committee and the

Clements taxonomy ''The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World'' is a book by Jim Clements which presents a list of the bird species of the world. The most recent printed version is the sixth edition (2007), but has been updated yearly, the last version in 2022 ...

recognized its promotion in 2021.Gill, F, D Donsker, and P Rasmussen (Eds). 2021. IOC World Bird List (v 11.2). Doi 10.14344/IOC.ML.11.2. http://www.worldbirdnames.org/Clements, T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ As of early 2024

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

's ''

Handbook of the Birds of the World The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. T ...

'' (HBW) had not recognized it as a species or subspecies.HBW and BirdLife International (2024). Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. Version 8.1. Available at: https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/taxonomy retrieved 26 August 2024 The equatorial antpitta is named for its distribution that roughly centers on the

Equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...

. The equatorial antpitta is monotypic.

Description

''Grallaria'' antpittas are a "wonderful group of plump and round antbirds whose feathers are often fluffed up...they have stout bills ndvery short tails". The equatorial antpitta is about long and weighs . The sexes have the same plumage. Adults have mostly rufous-brown upperparts; the sides of their head are somewhat more rufous. Their underparts are also mostly more rufous than their upperparts, with dark gray-brown flanks, a light rufous center to the belly, a buffy white to white vent, and whitish undertail coverts. Both sexes have a dark brown iris, a blackish bill with a paler base to the mandible, and grayish blue to vinaceous gray legs and feet.

Distribution and habitat

The equatorial antpitta is the most widely distributed species in the rufus antpitta complex. It has a

disjunct distribution In biology, a taxon with a disjunct distribution is one that has two or more groups that are related but considerably separated from each other geographically. The causes are varied and might demonstrate either the expansion or contraction of a s ...

with two main populations separated by the

Colombian Massif The Colombian Massif (from the Spanish Macizo Colombiano), also known colloquially as ''Nudo de Almaguer'', refers to a group of mountains within the Andes of south central Colombia. The massif is mainly within the area of the Cauca, Huila, and ...

. The northern population is found in Colombia's

Central Andes Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

east of the

Cauca River The Cauca River () is a river in Colombia that lies between the Occidental and Central cordilleras. From its headwaters in southwestern Colombia near the city of Popayán, it joins the Magdalena River near Magangue in Bolivar Department, and th ...

and has a small subpopulation further east past the Magdalena River Valley in the Iguaque Massif. The southern population is found on the western slope of Colombia's Eastern Andes and from there south through both of Ecuador's Andean ranges into northern Peru north of the Maranon River and east of the Huancabamba River in the departments of

Cajamarca Cajamarca (), also known by the Quechua name, ''Kashamarka'', is the capital and largest city of the Cajamarca Region as well as an important cultural and commercial center in the northern Andes. It is located in the northern highlands of Peru ...

and

Piura Piura is a city in northwestern Peru located in the Sechura Desert on the Piura River. It is the capital of the Piura Region and the Piura Province. Its population was 484,475 as of 2017. It was here that Spanish Conqueror Francisco Pizarro fou ...

. It is separated from the closely related Cajamarca antpitta (''G. cajamarcae'') by the

Huancabamba Huancabamba is a town in Northern Peru, capital of the province Huancabamba in the region Piura. It is situated in the valley of the Huancabamba river, along which the old Inca road passed leading from Quito to Cajamarca Cajamarca (), also ...

and Marañón rivers, and from the Chami antpitta (''G. alvarezi'') by the Cauca River Valley. The equatorial antpitta inhabits the floor and understory in the interior and edges of humid montane forest heavy with moss and

epiphyte An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...

s. It also occurs in more open environs such as '' páramo '' adjacent to forest, forest trails, and bare landslides. Some authors also say it favors boggy areas, seeps, and riparian corridors. In elevation it mostly ranges between but there are records as low as and as high as .

Behavior

Movement

The equatorial antpitta is assumed to be resident throughout its range.

Feeding

The equatorial antpitta's diet appears to be solely invertebrates including arthropods and earthworms. It forages while running or hopping on the forest floor and stopping to find prey by reaching into leaf litter and probing the soil. It has been observed associating with mixed-species feeding flocks. It is hypothesized to follow large mammals like tapirs to catch prey disturbed by their passage.

Breeding

The equatorial antpitta's breeding season has not been fully defined but appears to vary latitudinally and be concentrated in the local dry season. Its nest is a large cup made mostly of moss and sometimes thinly lined with fibers like grass, rootlets, and fungal

rhizomorph Mycelial cords are linear aggregations of parallel-oriented hyphae. The mature cords are composed of wide, empty vessel hyphae surrounded by narrower sheathing hyphae. Cords may look similar to plant roots, and also frequently have similar functio ...

s. All of the known nests were within of the ground. They were variously placed on a stump, on epiphyte clusters on a tree trunk, on stems near a tree trunk, and on a mossy cliff ledge, and were usually at least partially hidden. Nests have been found with one and two eggs. Both members of pairs have been observed building nests, both incubate the eggs, and both brood and provision nestlings. The incubation period and time to fledging are not known.

Vocalization

The equatorial antpitta's long song is "a rapid, slightly descending trill of short, ringing notes lasting ~1.5–3.5 econds. Its short song "begins with a single clear note, followed by a brief pause and then a fast, accelerating but stuttering trill of 4–5 notes". It apparently sings mostly at dawn and from a low perch.

Status

The

IUCN 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 ...

follows HBW taxonomy, which does not recognize the equatorial antpitta, and so has not assessed it. It is found in many governmental and private protected areas in Ecuador including

Podocarpus National Park Podocarpus National Park ( es, Parque Nacional Podocarpus) is a national park located in the provinces of Zamora Chinchipe and Loja Province, Loja, in the south-east of Ecuador. It was created in 1982. It covers 1462.80 km2, from two spur ...

and

Tabaconas Namballe National Sanctuary Tabaconas-Namballe National Sanctuary (''Santuario Nacional Tabaconas-Namballe'') is a national sanctuary in Peru established in 1988, and protects the southernmost part of the páramo ecosystem. It is located in San Ignacio Province, Cajamarca a ...

, a few in Colombia, and at least two in Peru. It " does not appear to be under immediate threat...however, the Equatorial Antpitta is undoubtedly detrimentally impacted by burning, forest clearing for agriculture and livestock, and other anthropogenic habitat modifications".

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q100307364 Grallaria Birds of Peru Birds of Ecuador Birds of Colombia Birds described in 1918