Slaty Brush-Finch (Atlapetes schistaceus)

Identification & Behavior: ~18 cm (7 in). The Slaty Brush-Finch is overall gray with black sides of the head and a rufous crown. The throat is whitish with a bold white malar stripe bordered by a black malar stripe and white spots on the forehead. It forages in Andean humid scrub, dwarf forest, the understory of forest edges, and bamboo. It is very similar to the closely related Cuzco Brush-Finch but is distinguished by having a whitish throat and bold black and white malar stripes. The range of these two brush-finches does not overlap.

Status: The Slaty Brush-Finch is uncommon in the understory of montane forests and humid scrub of the east slope of the Central Andes. It generally ranges at elevations between 2500-3750 m. The Slaty Brush-Finch also occurs in Co and Ec.

Name in Spanish: Matorralero Pizarroso.

Sub-species: Slaty Brush-Finch (Atlapetes schistaceus taczanowskii), (P. L. Sclater and Salvin), 1875.

Meaning of Name: Atlapetes: Gr. myth. Atlas, a Titan king who was changed into a mountain and petes= flier, to fly. schistaceus: L. schistaceus= slate-gray.

See more of the Family Passerellidae