Photo by Digitalbcon
Chicaque Natural Park, San Antonio del Tequendama, Cundinamarca, Colombia, July 2009
Chicaque Natural Park, San Antonio del Tequendama, Cundinamarca, Colombia, July 2009
- Pipraeidea melanonota
Identification
14cm. An unusual tanager with a short, wide bill with a small hook.
- Medium blue crown and nape
- Deep black broad mask
- Dull blue mantle and back
- Contrasting turquoise-blue lower back and rump
- Dusky blue tail
- Buffy cinnamon underparts, almost whitish-buff in some birds
Females are duller than males. Juveniles are dingy brownish-grey above without pattern.
Distribution
Found throughout most of South America.
Widespread. Rare to fairly common in its range.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
Two subspecies recognized:
- P. m. venezuelensis in the Andes of Colombia to Venezuela and south to Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and northwest Argentina
- P. m. melanonota from eastern Paraguay to southeast Brazil, Uruguay and northeast Argentina
Habitat
Forest borders and light woodland.
Occurs in the Andes mostly from 1500 to 2500m, occasionally higher. As low as 400m in Venezuela.
Behaviour
Forages in the canopy, usually alone. Does only sometimes associate with mixed-species flocks.
Diet
Feeds mostly on berries, fruits, seeds and larvae.
Breeding
Breeding recorded between March and August.
Movement
Some seasonal or nomadic movements known, but poorly understood.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2012. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2012. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2011. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 16: Tanagers to New World Blackbirds. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553781
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Fawn-breasted Tanager. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Fawn-breasted_Tanager
