From Opus

The bird on right (lying down)
Photo by Oregonian
Rio Blanco Reserve, Manizalis, Caldas, Colombia.

Hemispingus melanotis

Inludes: Piura Hemispingus, Western Hemispingus

[edit] Identification

Variable species. The different subspecies vary in presence vs absence of white supercilium and black vs pale throat. Uppersides are generally blueish-gray to olive (sometimes with darker crown), undersides buff to rufous-cinnamon, and sides of head black.

[edit] Distribution

South America: found in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia

[edit] Taxonomy

[edit] Subspecies^[1]

Around six subspecies recognized:

• H. m. melanotis:

• Andes of Colombia to south-western Venezuela and eastern Ecuador

• H. m. macrophrys:

• Pacific slope of Andes of westen Peru (La Libertad)

• H. m. berlepschi:

• Subtropical Andes of central Peru (Junín)

• H. m. castaneicollis:

• Andes of south-eastern [[Peru (Puno) and yungas of western Bolivia

• H. m. ochraceus Western:

• Western slope of Andes of south-western Colombia (Nariño) and western Ecuador

• H. m. piurae:

• Locally in Andes of extreme south-western Ecuador and north-western Peru (Piura)

H. piurae (sometimes together with macrophrys but more often as monotypic) is sometimes considered a full species, Piura Hemispingus. H. ochraceus is sometimes considered a monotypic full species, Western Hemispingus

[edit] Habitat

Undergrowth in a variety of wet to very wet forests at mid elevation.

[edit] Behaviour

Often with mixed species flocks while feeding for both insects and seeds

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
2. Avibase
3. Restall et al. 2006. Birds of Northern South America. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300124156
4. Wikipedia

• List of references

[edit] External Links