The Peruvian treehunter (''Thripadectes scrutator'') is a species of
bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird
family Furnariidae. It is found in
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.
It is also called the rufous-backed treehunter
[Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2022. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2022. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ retrieved November 10, 2022] or buff-throated treehunter.
Taxonomy and systematics
The Peruvian treehunter is a
sister species of the
uniform treehunter (''T. ignobilis'') and
flammulated treehunter (''T. flammulatus'').
[Derryberry, E. P., S. Claramunt, G. Derryberry, R. T. Chesser, J. Cracraft, A. Aleixo, J. Pérez-Emán, J. V. Remsen, Jr., and R. T. Brumfield. (2011). Lineage diversification and morphological evolution in a large-scale continental radiation: the Neotropical ovenbirds and woodcreepers (Aves: Furnariidae). Evolution 65(10):2973–2986. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1558-5646.2011.01374.x] It is
monotypic.
[ However, the individuals in the southern part of the species' range are more reddish than the northern ones and might warrant recognition as a subspecies.][Remsen, J.V., Jr. 2003. Family Furnariidae (ovenbirds). Pp. 162-357 in "Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 8. Broadbills to Tapaculos." (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliot, and D. A. Christie, eds.). Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.]
Description
The Peruvian treehunter is long and weighs . It is a robust furnariid with a heavy bill. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults have a blackish face with sharp buff streaks. Their lores are blackish speckled buff. Their crown, the sides of their neck, and their upper back are blackish with wide but diffuse buff streaks that disappear by the lower back. Their lower back is rich brown with faint rufous streaks that disappear into the dark rufous rump. Their uppertail 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 ...
are chestnut. Their wing coverts are chestnut, their flight feathers pale rufous-chestnut, and their tail chestnut. Their throat and breast are blackish with buff streaks that are heaviest on the upper breast. Their lower breast, belly, and flanks are brownish with faint buff streaks that fade towards the bottom. Their undertail coverts are rufous. Their iris is brown to dark brown, their bill black, and their legs and feet gray to brown.[Lloyd, H. (2020). Rufous-backed Treehunter (''Thripadectes scrutator''), 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.rubtre1.01 retrieved September 6, 2023]
Distribution and habitat
The Peruvian treehunter is found along the east slope of the Andes from northern Peru's Department of Amazonas
Amazonas () is a department of Southern Colombia in the south of the country. It is the largest department in area while also having the 3rd smallest population. Its capital is Leticia and its name comes from the Amazon River, which drains the ...
through Peru south and east of the Marañón River into Bolivia as far as Cochabamba Department. It inhabits the zone from upper elevation cloudforest
A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud c ...
into elfin forest, a humid landscape where it favors large dense stands of ''Chusquea
''Chusquea'' is a genus of evergreen bamboos in the grass family. Most of them are native to mountain habitats in Latin America, from Mexico to southern Chile and Argentina.
They are sometimes referred to as South American mountain bamboos. Unl ...
'' bamboo. In elevation it ranges from .[
]
Behavior
Movement
The Peruvian treehunter is a year-round resident throughout its range.[
]
Feeding
The Peruvian treehunter is reported to feed on arthropods, molluscs, and small vertebrates.
It forages in dense undergrowth, usually within about of the ground, and is usually by itself though occasionally in pairs. It very rarely joins mixed-species feeding flocks. Its feeding technique is not well known but it is believed to probe and glean in moss and foliage along bamboo, tree limbs, and trunks.[
]
Breeding
The Peruvian treehunter is thought to be monogamous. Nothing else is known about its breeding biology.[
]
Vocalization
The Peruvian treehunter's song is "a loud rattle, consisting of a rapid series of rising-falling/accelerating-decelerating notes ''tchu-tchu-tchu-tchu’TCHI’TCHI’TCHI’TCHI’TCHI’TCHI’ tchu’tchu-tchu-tchu-tchu''. Its call is "a sharp, loud ''TCHIK''".[
]
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 Peruvian treehunter as being of Least Concern. It has a large range and an unknown population size that is believed to be stable. No immediate threats have been identified.[ It is a poorly-known species that appears to be thinly distributed. Its habitat is being "cleared and/or fragmented at an alarming rate throughout the species range. The effects of these anthropogenic effects on Rufous-backed Treehunter populations remain unknown".][
]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1274677
Peruvian treehunter
Birds of the Peruvian Andes
Peruvian treehunter
Taxa named by Władysław Taczanowski
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot