The
Tapaculos of family
Rhinocryptidae occur mainly in South America, a few in Central America. These are terrestrial species that fly only poorly on their short wings. They have strong legs, well-suited to their habitat of grassland or forest undergrowth. The tail is cocked and pointed towards the head. While the majority of the family are small blackish or brown birds there are some larger and more colourful species.They feed on insects, seeds and other soft plant material with their pointy bills, and will scratch on the ground like a pheasant.
Their closest relatives might be the antthrushes of family
Formicariidae. They are also related to the antbirds (
Thamnophilidae) and gnateaters (
Conopophagidae).
Genus Acropternis - 1 species
Tapaculo,_Ocellated Acropternis orthonyx Found: Columbia, Peru, Venezuelaß
Image by:
1, 2) Nick Athanas
Genus Eleoscytalopus
Tapaculo,_Bahia Eleoscytalopus psychopompus Found: state of Bahia, Brazil
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Andrew_Whittaker
Tapaculo,_White-breasted Eleoscytalopus indigoticus Found: eastern Brazil
Image by:
1, 2) Dario_Sanches 3)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Joao_Sergio_de_Souza
Genus Eugralla - 1 species
Tapaculo,_Ochre-flanked Eugralla paradoxa Found: Chile and adjacent Argentina
Image by: 1, 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Esteban Argerich, Andrew_Spencer
Genus Liosceles - 1 species
Tapaculo,_Rusty-belted Liosceles thoracicus Found: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru,
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Ecuador 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Joe_Tobias in Peru
Genus Merulaxis
Bristlefront,_Slaty Merulaxis ater Found: southeast Brazil
Image by: 1)
Francesco_Veronesi 2. 3)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Marcelo _Barreiros, Kacau Oliveira
4) Nick Athanas
1, 2) Female 3, 4) Male
Bristlefront,_Stresemann's Merulaxis stresemanni Found: Brazil
Image by: 1, 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Ciro_Albano in Brazil
Genus Myornis - 1 species
Tapaculo,_Ash-colored
Myornis senilis Found: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Ecuador
Genus Psilorhamphus - 1 species
Bamboowren,_Spotted Psilorhamphus guttatus Found: southeastern Brazil and far northeastern Argentina
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Brazil 2)
Dario_Sanches 3)
Rick_elis_simpson
Genus Pteroptochos
Huet-huet,_Black-throated Pteroptochos tarnii Found: Argentina, Chile
Image by: 1)
Jose_Canas 2)
Jorge_Zuniga_Vega 3)
Joshua_Stone - Chile
Huet-huet,_Chestnut-throated Pteroptochos castaneus Found: Argentina, Chile
Image by: 1)
Joseph_Smit 2)
Gaston
Turca,_Moustached Pteroptochos megapodius Found: Chile
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Chile 2)
Rodolfo_Walker - Chile 3)
Gabriel_Barrera_Maffioletti - Santiago
Genus Rhinocrypta - 1 species
Gallito,_Crested Rhinocrypta lanceolata Found: Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay
Image by: 1)
Svtiste 2) Nick Athanas - Argentina 3)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Ignacio_Hernandez
Genus Scelorchilus
Tapaculo,_Chucao Scelorchilus rubecula Found: mainly Chile; also nearby Argentina
Image by: 1)
Nicolas_Binder 2) Nick Athanas 3)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Matt_Brady
Tapaculo,_White-throated Scelorchilus albicollis Found: Chile
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Jose_Canas
2) Nick Athanas - Chile
Genus Scytalopus
These tapaculos have mainly gray plumage, often brown rumps and lower flanks. They are difficult to see, usually hidden among the forest floor. Many are very similar in size and best identified by range, altitude, and/or song.
Tapaculo,_Ancash Scytalopus affinis Found: Peru
Image by: 1, 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Ian_Davies, Ross Gallardy
Tapaculo,_Bahian_Mouse-colored also
Boa Nova Tapaculo Scytalopus gonzagai Found: Bahia, BrazilVenezuela
Image by: 1)
Ciro_Albano
Tapaculo,_Blackish Scytalopus latrans Found: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela
Image by: 1)
Aves_y_Conservacion - Ecuador 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Hugo_Loaiza in Columbia
1) Female 2) Male
Tapaculo,_Bolivian Scytalopus bolivianus Found: Bolivia, Peru
Image by: 1)
Dubi Shapiro Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Dubi_Shapiro
Tapaculo,_Brasilia Scytalopus novacapitalis Found: Brazil
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Brazil 2)
Hector_Bottai 3)
Claudio_D_Timm
Tapaculo,_Brown-rumped Scytalopus latebricola Found: northeast Columbia
Image by: 1, 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Jorge_Munoz_Garcia, Luis_Uruena
Tapaculo,_Caracas Scytalopus caracae Found: northern Venezuela
Image by: 1, 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Jhonathan_Miranda
Tapaculo,_Choco Scytalopus chocoensis Found: eastern Columbia, Ecuador, Panama
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas
Tapaculo,_Chusquea Scytalopus parkeri Found:southern Ecuador, northern Peru
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Ecuador 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Paul Molina
Tapaculo,_Diademed Scytalopus schulenbergi Found: Bolivai, Peru
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds - Cory_Gregory in Peru
Tapaculo,_Diamantina Scytalopus diamantinensis Found: Bahia, Brazil
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Marcelo_Barreiros 2)
Guto_Balieiro
Tapaculo,_Dusky Scytalopus fuscus Found: Chile
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Jose_Canas
Tapaculo,_Ecuadorian Scytalopus robbinsi Found: Ecuador
Image by: 1)
hbw.com
Tapaculo,_Junin Scytalopus gettyae Found: Peru
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas 2)
Alex_Duran
1) Juvenile
Tapaculo,_Large-footed Scytalopus macropus Found: Peru
Image by: 1)
hbw.com
Tapaculo,_Long-tailed Scytalopus micropterus Found: Columbia, Ecuador, Peru
Image by: 1) Francesco_Veronesi
Tapaculo,_Magdalena Scytalopus rodriguezi Found: central Andes of Columbia
Image by: 1)
Nigel Voaden Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Nigel_Voaden, Dubi_Shapiro
Tapaculo,_Magellanic Scytalopus magellanicus Found: temperate rainforests of Argentina and Chile
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Chile 2)
Diego_Arellano 2)
Roberto_Guller
Tapaculo,_Marsh Scytalopus iraiensis Found: Brazil
Image by: 1)
Sergio_Gregorio_Da_Silva Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Sergio_Gregorio_da_Silva
Tapaculo,_Merida Scytalopus meridanus Found: northwest Venezuela
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Karla_Perez
Tapaculo,_Mouse-colored Scytalopus speluncae Found: southeastern Brazil
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Brazil 2)
Hector_Bottai 3)
Claudio_Timm
Tapaculo,_Narino Scytalopus vicinior Found: Pacific slope of Andes in Columbia, Ecuador
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Dubi_Shapiro
Tapaculo,_Neblina Scytalopus altirostris Found: east slope of the Andes in northern Peru
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas
Tapaculo,_Pale-bellied Scytalopus griseicollis Found: Columbia, Venezuela
Image by:
1, 2) Andres_Cuervo 3)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Daniel_Uribe in Columbia
1, 2) Juvenile
Tapaculo,_Pale-throated also
Tacaruna Tapaculo Scytalopus panamensis Found: eastern Panama, northwest Columbia
Image by: 1)
hbw.com
Tapaculo,_Paramillo Scytalopus canus Found: high elevations in West Andes of Colombia
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Anttanager
Tapaculo,_Paramo Scytalopus opacus Found: Andes of northern Peru, Ecuador, southern Columbia
Image by: 1)
Daniel_Uribe - Columbia 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds - Daniel Uribe , Timothy_Boucher, Columbia
1) Juvenile female
Tapaculo,_Perija Scytalopus perijanus Found:
Serranía del Perijá mountain range on the Colombia–Venezuela border
Image by:
1, 2, 3)
Andres_Cuervo
1) Juvenile
Tapaculo,_Planalto Scytalopus pachecoi Found: Argentina, Brazil
Image by:
1, 2) Claudio_D_Timm - Brazil
Tapaculo,_Puna Scytalopus simonsi Found: south Peru to central Bolivia
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Daniel_Lane in Peru
Tapaculo,_Rock also
Espinhaco Tapaculo Scytalopus petrophilus Found: Brazil
Image by: 1, 2 )
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Gabriel_Leite, Bruno_Renno
3) Nick Athanas
Tapaculo,_Rufous-vented Scytalopus femoralis Found: Peru
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Christian_Nunes
Tapaculo,_Santa_Marta Scytalopus sanctaemartae Found: Santa Marta Mountains of Colombia
Image by: 1)
Hernan_Arias Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds - Hernan_Arias
Tapaculo,_Silvery-fronted Scytalopus argentifrons Found: Costa Rica, Panama
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Jorge_Chinchilla 2)
Francesco_Veronesi - Costa Rica
Tapaculo,_Spillmann's Scytalopus spillmanni Found: Andes of Columbia and Ecuador
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Ecuador 2)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Alonso_Quevedo_Gil
1) Juvenile
Tapaculo,_Stiles's Scytalopus stilesi Found: Columbian Andes
Image by:
Tapaculo,_Trilling Scytalopus parvirostris Found: Bolivia, Peru
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Peru
Tapaculo,_Tschudi's Scytalopus acutirostris Found: central Peru
Image by:
1, 2) Nick Athanas
Tapaculo,_Unicolor Scytalopus unicolor Found: Peru
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Manuel_Roncal-Rabanal
Tapaculo,_Vilcabamba Scytalopus urubambae Found: southern Peru at very high altitudes
Image by: 1)
Pablo_Florez Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Pablo_Florez
Tapaculo,_White-browed Scytalopus superciliaris Found: northern Argentina
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas
Tapaculo,_White-crowned Scytalopus atratus Found: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela
Image by: 1)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Dusan_Brinkhuizen, Wladimir_Giraldo_Velasquez
Tapaculo,_Zimmer's Scytalopus zimmeri Found: Argentina, Bolivia
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas
Genus Teledromas - 1 species
Gallito,_Sandy Teledromas fuscus Found: Argentina
Image by:
1) Nick Athanas - Argentina 2)
Ron_Knight 3)
Cornell_Univ's_Neotropical_Birds_Online - Ignacio_Hernandez
The crescentchests are birds of arid scrub. They generally forage on the ground, but their diet has not yet been recorded. Little is know about their breeding behavior.
The tapaculos of family
Rhinocryptidae are their nearest relatives and the crescentchests used to be placed in that family.
Genus Melanopareia
The crescentchests have striking plumage, long tail, long legs.
Crescentchest,_Collared Melanopareia torquata Found: Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay
The Collared Crescentchrest has rufous brown upperparts; white supercilium; wide black eye-line extends to neck; buffy neck; blac collar; tawny buff underparts.
Image by: 1, 2)
Nick Athanas - Brazil
3, 4) Mauricio Mercadante - Brazil
Crescentchest,_Elegant Melanopareia elegans Found: Ecuador, Peru
The Elegant Crescentchest has olive upperparts; black head with white supercilium; light cream throat; orange underparts. Male has with blackish upper-breast; female does not.
Image by: 1, 2)
Nick Athanas - Ecuador 3)
Jorge Montejo - Peru
1) Female 2, 3) Male
Crescentchest,_Maranon Melanopareia maranonica Found: Ecuador, Peru
The male Maranon Crescentchest has mainly olive upperparts; black crown; whitish supercilium; broad black eye-line; pale buffy throat; black collar; chestnut underparts. Female similar but paler, sooty crown; tawny underparts.
Image by: 1)
jan veenstra - Peru 2)
Jean Paul Perret - Peru 3)
Nick Athanas - Peru
Crescentchest,_Olive-crowned Melanopareia maximiliani Found: Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay
The Olive-crowned Crescentchest has olive upperpars, crown; pale supercilium; black mask; buffy throat; black crescent on breast; rufous underparts.
Image by: 1)
jan veenstra 2)
Nick Athanas - Argentina