The Yucatan wren (''Campylorhynchus yucatanicus'') 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 lightweig ...

in the family Troglodytidae. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, and it is only found on the narrow coastal strip of the northern

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula (, also , ; es, Península de Yucatán ) is a large peninsula in southeastern Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north ...

. One of the key habitats of this species is the Petenes mangroves ecoregion of the Yucatan coast. It is threatened by

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

Description

The adult Yucatan wren is a small species about long. The face is whitish with a dark eye-stripe and the crown is greyish brown. The upper parts are brown streaked with black and white and the wings are brown barred with dark brown and white. The tail is black barred with grey, with white tips to some of the outer feathers. The underparts are whitish with a dark cheek-stripe and blackish spotting and barring. The juvenile is similar in appearance to the adult but with less contrast between the upper and underparts.

Distribution and habitat

The Yucatan wren is endemic to a coastal strip of the Yucatan peninsula. It can be found in arid areas with scrub and large cacti, and also the edges of pastureland. Its breeding range is even more restricted to a strip about one kilometre wide edging the mangrove forests which fringe the coast.

Ecology

The Yucatan wren is usually seen in pairs or small family groups and forages among the foliage and on the ground. Its diet is unknown. The Yucatan wren starts nest-building activities in April but eggs are not laid until June. The nests are globular grass structures with side-entrances, and are built a few metres off the ground in coastal scrub and the borders of the black mangrove (''Avicennia germinans'') forest which thrives along the coasts of the region. Clutch size averages three eggs and both parents help rear the chicks. A third adult has been observed feeding the chicks occasionally, an example of cooperative breeding.

Status

The population of the Yucatan wren is believed to be stable but its range is small, and the bird is threatened by habitat loss as the area in which it lives is developed for tourism. For these reasons, the

International Union for Conservation of Nature 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 nat ...

has assessed its conservation status as a " near-threatened species".

References

* World Wildlife Fund. 2010
''Petenes mangroves''
eds. Mark McGinley, C.Michael Hogan & C. Cleveland. Encyclopedia of Earth. National Council for Science and the Environment. Washington DC {{Taxonbar, from=Q2667767 Yucatan wren Birds of the Yucatán Peninsula Yucatan wren Yucatan wren Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Endemic birds of Mexico