Barred Antshrike
A species of Typical antshrikes Scientific name : Thamnophilus doliatus Genus : Typical antshrikes
Barred Antshrike, A species of Typical antshrikes
Botanical name: Thamnophilus doliatus
Genus: Typical antshrikes
Content
Description General Info
Photo By CHOCA-BARRADA_fêmea_(Thamnophilus_doliatus).jpg , used under CC-BY-SA-2.0 /Cropped and compressed from original
Description
The barred antshrike is 15–16 cm (5.9–6.3 in) in length, and weighs 24–30 g (0.85–1.06 oz). This species exhibits marked sexual dimorphism. The male of the nominate race is barred all over with black and white, and has a white-based black crest that is raised in display. The female is rufous above with a chestnut crest. The sides of her head and neck are streaked with black, and the underparts are rich buff. In both sexes, the legs are grey, the bill is black and the iris is pale yellow. The subspecies vary primarily in the overall darkness and the amount of barring and hue of the underparts. For example, in the Tobagonian race T. d. tobagensis, males are whiter below, and females darker, than in the nominate subspecies. The most distinctive subspecies is T. d. capistratus of the Caatinga in north-eastern Brazil, where males have uniform black crown (no white barring to the base) and females have streaked throat and faintly barred belly. It is also the only subspecies where the iris is deep maroon-red. It has been suggested that it should be considered a separate species, the Caatinga barred antshrike.
Size
16 cm
Nest Placement
Shrub
Feeding Habits
Barred Antshrike primarily feasts on insects, supplemented with fruit, small lizards, seeds, and occasionally bread. It forages with deft maneuvers, often in pairs, extracting prey from foliage. It shows a particular penchant for termites and exploits seasonally abundant resources like pollen.
Habitat
Barred Antshrike typically inhabits areas close to the ground in dense undergrowth, particularly around the forest edge and within closed non-deciduous forests. It is also found in dry scrublands, gardens, deciduous woodlands, second-growth forests, and thickets, as well as amidst shrubs. The species favors regions with moderate rainfall and can adapt to a range of disturbed or secondary habitats, indicating a degree of ecological flexibility. Broadly, barred Antshrike occupies a variety of wooded environments across the Neotropics.
Dite type
Insectivorous
General Info
Feeding Habits
Bird food type
Behavior
It is typically found as territorial pairs. The female lays two purple-marked creamy white eggs in a deep cup nest in a shrub, which are incubated by both sexes for 14 days to hatching. The chicks fledge in another 12–13 days. The barred antshrike is an insectivore which feeds on ants and other arthropods at or near the ground; it sometimes follows columns of army ants, and will take small lizards and berries. It is a skulking species, which may be located by its chuckling hu-hu-hu-hu-hu-hu song, often performed as a duet by a pair of birds, or a growled graaaaa.
Species Status
Not globally threatened.
Photo By CHOCA-BARRADA_fêmea_(Thamnophilus_doliatus).jpg , used under CC-BY-SA-2.0 /Cropped and compressed from original
Scientific Classification
Phylum
Chordates Class
Birds Order
Perching birds Family
Antbirds Genus
Typical antshrikes Species
Barred Antshrike