The crescentchests are a

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 ...

, ''Melanopareia'', of suboscine

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 from

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

. The genus has long been placed with the tapaculos in the family Rhinocryptidae. Their placement there has been questioned and in 2007 the genus was placed in its own family, Melanopareiidae, by the South American Classification Committee. Subsequently, the family was accepted by the

International Ornithological Congress International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

Bird List and the Clements Checklist. The family Melanopareiidae was formally erected in 2009. The crescentchests range in length from , in weight from and have relatively long tails compared to the tapaculos. The

plumage Plumage ( "feather") is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, ...

is striking with a distinctive band across the chest that gives the group their name. The crescentchests are birds of arid scrub. They generally forage on the ground, but their diet has not yet been recorded. Two species, the collared crescentchest and olive-crowned crescentchest, are widely distributed across central and southern Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and northern Argentina. The double-collared crescentchest, which was recently split from the collared crescentchest, is found in eastern Bolivia, whilst the other two species, the elegant crescentchest and Marañón crescentchest, have a more restricted distribution in Peru and Ecuador.Krabbe, N.K., and T.S. Schulenberg. (2003). Family Rhinocryptidae (Tapaculos), pp. 748 –788 ''in'' del Hoyo, J., A. Elliott & D.A. Christie, (eds) ''Handbook of the Birds of the World Vol. 8.Broadbills to Tapaculos''. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. Little is known about the behaviour of the crescentchests. The only species about which anything is known about the breeding behaviour is the olive-crowned crescentchest. That species is a seasonal breeder. The nest of that species is a 15 cm high cup made of vegetable fibres and palm fronds, hidden in grasses or low shrubs close to the ground. The clutch size is two to three eggs, the eggs are white with blotches or black spots. No species of crescentchest is considered by 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 ...

to be

threatened Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensat ...

by human activities, but the Marañón crescentchest is listed as near threatened. Although the species is apparently tolerant of some disturbance it has a tiny global range and is uncommon even within that range. Melanopareia maximiliani 1847

Species

The genus contains the following five species:

References

External links

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Crescentchests
Don Roberson's Bird Families of the World. {{Taxonbar, from=Q2080466 Melanopareia Taxa named by Ludwig Reichenbach Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa described in 1853