Rufous-tailed Plantcutter
A species of Plantcutters Scientific name : Phytotoma rara Genus : Plantcutters
Rufous-tailed Plantcutter, A species of Plantcutters
Botanical name: Phytotoma rara
Genus: Plantcutters
Content
Description General Info
Description
It is a stocky bird, 18-20 centimetres in length, with short wings and a red eye. The longish tail is black with a reddish base. The upperparts of the male are grey-brown with dark streaks while the crown and underparts are chestnut-coloured. There is a white bar on the wing and a pattern of dark and pale areas on the face. Females have buff underparts with brown streaks and have buff rather than white in the wings. They do not have the males' chestnut crown but may show a cinnamon wash to the forehead and throat. The song is a series of stuttering notes followed by a rasping trill similar to the noise made by a fishing reel. The finch-like bill is short and thick with serrated edges and is used for stripping off buds, leaves and fruits. Insects are eaten on occasions and are fed to the chicks. 
Size
20 cm
Colors
Brown
Black
Yellow
Red
Bronze
Gray
White
Orange
Feeding Habits
Rufous-tailed Plantcutter primarily feeds on buds, leaves, and fruits, using its serrated bill for stripping foliage. Occasionally, rufous-tailed Plantcutter consumes insects, especially when feeding chicks. This finch-like bill is a unique adaptation for its herbivorous diet.
Habitat
The rufous-tailed Plantcutter thrives in a variety of environments ranging from open thorny scrublands with vegetation like Berberis bushes to edges of woodlands and clearings in Nothofagus forests. Additionally, these birds are found in secondary forests and are not uncommon in anthropogenic landscapes, including farmlands, hedgerows, orchards, vineyards, and gardens. Typically inhabiting regions from sea level up to 2700 meters in elevation, the rufous-tailed Plantcutter occupies habitats across broader temperate southern zones of South America.
Dite type
Herbivorous
General Info
Distribution Area
The rufous-tailed plantcutter is found further south than any other cotinga, inhabiting scrub, forest edge and river valleys in Chile and western Argentina. The range extends from Magallanes region north to Atacama in Chile and from Santa Cruz north to Mendoza in Argentina. Birds breeding in southern or high-altitude regions move northwards or towards the lowlands in winter. It has been recorded as a vagrant to the Falkland Islands. Birds are often seen in gardens, farmland and orchards and are sometimes considered to be a pest. The nest is a cup of root fibres and twigs built in a fork in a shrub or tree. Two to four eggs are laid, they are blue-green with dark spots concentrated at the larger end.
Species Status
Not globally threatened.
Scientific Classification
Phylum
Chordates Class
Birds Order
Perching birds Family
Cotingas Genus
Plantcutters Species
Rufous-tailed Plantcutter 
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