The orange-bellied antwren (''Terenura sicki'') or Sick's antwren, is a Critically Endangered species of bird in subfamily Thamnophilinae of family Thamnophilidae, the "typical antbirds". It is endemic to Brazil.

Taxonomy and systematics

The orange-bellied antwren is monotypic. It shares genus ''Terenura'' with the streak-capped antwren (''T. maculata''); the two are sister speciesZimmer, K., M.L. Isler, and C. J. Sharpe (2020). Orange-bellied Antwren (''Terenura sicki''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.orbant1.01 retrieved February 17, 2024 and may form a superspeciesRemsen, 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 classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved November 27, 2023.

Description

The orange-bellied antwren is long and weighs . Adult males' crown, nape, and upper back are streaked black and white. The rest of their upperparts are black with a few white streaks; they have a hidden white patch between the shoulders. Their wings are black with pale edges on the flight feathers and wide white tips on the

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 ...

. Their tail is blackish. Their throat and underparts are white. Adult females have a rufous back and rump and orange underparts. The white streaks on their head have a pale buff tinge.

Distribution and habitat

The orange-bellied antwren 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 ...

in the northeastern Brazilian states of Pernambuco and Alagoas. It inhabits the subcanopy and canopy of semi-humid evergreen forest. In elevation it mostly ranges between but occurs as low as .

Behavior

Movement

The orange-bellied antwren is a year-round resident throughout its range.

Feeding

The orange-bellied antwren's diet is not known in detail but is mostly insects and probably includes spiders. It forages singly, in pairs, or in family groups, and often though not habitually as part of a mixed-species feeding flock. It feeds mostly between about above the ground though sometimes as low as . It actively and restlessly gleans its prey in dense vegetation, mostly in vine tangles. It typically gleans while perched or with short lunges. It sometimes makes short sallies to hover-glean. It is not known to follow army ant swarms.

Breeding

The orange-bellied antwren's breeding season is thought to span from November to February. Its nest is a small cup of moss and fungal fibers, hung from a fork near the end of a branch typically about above the ground. The clutch size, incubation period, time to fledging, and details of parental care are not known.

Vocalization

The orange-bellied antwren's song is a "very high, very sharp 'tewée-tuwée-tititititi', diminishing in strength". Its calls are a "sharp 'chip' and slightly longer, lower downslurred note".

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 ...

originally in 1988 assessed the orange-bellied antwren as Threatened, then in 1994 as Vulnerable, in 2000 as Endangered, and since 2016 as Critically Endangered. It has a very small and fragmented range and its estimated population of 50 to 250 mature individuals is believed to be decreasing. It is known from about 10 locations. The principal threat is ongoing habitat destruction. "There has been massive clearance of Atlantic forest in Alagoas and Pernambuco, largely as a result of logging and conversion to sugarcane plantations and pasture." It does occur in a few nominally protected areas but some of them are still logged.

References

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q224568 orange-bellied antwren Endemic birds of Brazil orange-bellied antwren Taxonomy articles created by Polbot