kids encyclopedia robot

Plumbeous antbird facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
Plumbeous antbird
Myrmelastes hyperythrus - Plumbeous antbird (male).jpg
Male
Myrmelastes hyperythrus - Plumbeous antbird (female).jpg
Female
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Genus:
Myrmelastes
Species:
hyperythrus
Myrmelastes hyperythrus map.svg
Synonyms

Myrmeciza hyperythra

The plumbeous antbird (Myrmelastes hyperythrus) is a species of bird in the family Thamnophilidae.

It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical swamps.

Taxonomy

The plumbeous antbird was described by the English zoologist Philip Sclater in 1855 and given the binomial name Thamnophilus hyperythrus. The specific name combines the Ancient Greek words hupo "beneath" and eruthros "red". Alternatively, the name may be from the Greek word huperuthros for "reddish". The current genus Myrmelastes was introduced by Sclater in 1858 with the plumbeous antbird as the type species.

Description

The plumbeous antbird is 17 cm (6.7 in) in length. The male is slaty gray with blackish-gray wings and tail. The wing coverts have conspicuous white spots. Each eye is surrounded by an extensive patch of light blue skin. The female has similar upperparts including the white spots on each wing but is bright orange-rufous below.

The spot-winged antbird (Myrmelastes leucostigma) and the slate-colored antbird (Myrmelastes schistaceus) lack the light blue periorbital skin patches, the white-shouldered antbird (Akletos melanoceps) and the sooty antbird (Hafferia fortis) are blacker than the plumbeous antbird and lack the white spots on the wing.

Breeding

The nest of this species was first described in 2003 based on two nests found in Manú National Park, Peru. The open cup-shaped nests were suspended 0.7 m (2 ft 4 in) and 1.0 m (3 ft 3 in) above the ground. They were constructed of black rhizomorphs and covered in dry leaves attached with spider silk. Each nest contained two eggs. These had a pinkish white background which was almost completely covered with dark purplish-red streaks. They measured 23 mm × 17 mm (0.91 in × 0.67 in) in the first nest and 24 mm × 20 mm (0.94 in × 0.79 in) in the second.

kids search engine
Plumbeous antbird Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.