The bar-winged wood wren (''Henicorhina leucoptera'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

in the family Troglodytidae. It is found in southern

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

and northern

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 ...

.Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ Retrieved August 15, 2019

Taxonomy and systematics

The bar-winged wood wren was originally thought to be closely related to the grey-breasted wood wren (''Henicorhina leucophrys'') but later DNA studies showed that it is more closely related to the white-breasted wood wren (''H. leucosticta''). It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

.Schulenberg, T. S. and T. Johnson (2020). Bar-winged Wood-Wren (''Henicorhina leucoptera''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (T. S. Schulenberg, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.bwwwre1.01 retrieved July 17, 2021

Description

The bar-winged wood wren is approximately long. The adult's crown is light gray-brown darkening to dusky brown on the upper back. Its lower back and rump are reddish brown. The tail is black with some fine dusky bars. Its folded wing shows two prominent white bars formed by the tips of the coverts. It has a wide white

supercilium The supercilium is a plumage feature found on the heads of some bird species. It is a stripe which runs from the base of the bird's beak above its eye, finishing somewhere towards the rear of the bird's head.Dunn and Alderfer (2006), p. 10 Also ...

, a broken white eye ring, a black patch behind the eye, and a black and white streaked cheek. Its chin, throat, and upper breast are off-white mottled with pale gray. The center of the belly is white darkening to pale cinnamon on the lower belly and darker cinnamon in the vent area. The juvenile's underside is dark gray, brown, and cinnamon and it does not show wing bars.

Distribution and habitat

The bar-winged wood wren is found on the east 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 ...

of southeastern Ecuador and northern Peru. It inhabits the understory of

elfin forest Dwarf forest, elfin forest, or pygmy forest is an uncommon ecosystem featuring miniature trees, inhabited by small species of fauna such as rodents and lizards. They are usually located at high elevations, under conditions of sufficient air humi ...

, a biome found mostly on separate ridges with poor soils. In Ecuador it ranges in elevation between and in Peru between .

Behavior

Feeding

The bar-winged wood wren is known to be insectivorous but no other details of its diet have been published. It forages on and near the ground, making short flights and probing and gleaning vegetation for prey.

Breeding

Virtually nothing is known about the bar-winged wood-wren's breeding

phenology Phenology is the study of periodic events in biological life cycles and how these are influenced by seasonality, seasonal and interannual variations in climate, as well as environmental factor, habitat factors (such as elevation). Examples includ ...

. A juvenile was collected in July.

Vocalization

The bar-winged wood wren's song is "a mellow, whistled warbling phrase", often sung as a duet by a pair. Its calls include "a dry ''tchut''" and "a squeaky ''wink''".

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 ...

has assessed the bar-winged wood wren as Least concern. It has a small geographic range and specialized habitat requirements. Nevertheless, it is "'fairly common' in Ecuador nd'plentiful' at the type locality in Peru".

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3313766 bar-winged wood wren Birds of the Ecuadorian Andes Birds of the Peruvian Andes bar-winged wood wren bar-winged wood wren Taxonomy articles created by Polbot