Puna Thistletail (Asthenes helleri)

Order: Passeriformes | Family: Furnariidae | IUCN Status: Least Concern

puna_thistletail
Age: Adult | Sex: Unknown | Loc. Abra Malaga, Cuzco

puna_thistletail
Age: Adult | Sex: Unknown | Loc. Acjanaco, Cuzco

puna_thistletail
Age: Adult | Sex: Unknown | Loc. Mollepata, Cuzco

puna_thistletail
Age: Adult | Sex: Unknown | Loc. Acjanaco, Cuzco


Identification & Behavior: ~18 cm (7 in). The Puna Thistletail has rufous-brown upperparts and crown. The underparts and superciliary are grayish. It has a pale or orange chin patch, which is finely streaked with whitish. The rufous-brown tail is very long and strongly graduated with the wispy tips. It forages in humid scrub and forest edges generally near treeline. It is similar to the Azara’s Spinetail but is distinguished by having uniform rufous brown upperparts which are concolor with the crown.

Status: The Puna Thistletail is uncommon in humid scrub near treeline in southeast Peru at elevations ranging between 2200-3700 m. It also occurs in Bo.

Name in Spanish: Cola-Cardo de la Puna.

Sub-species: Puna Thistletail (Asthenes helleri), Chapman, 1923.

Meaning of Name: Asthenes: Gr. a= a negative prefix and sthenos= power. asthenes= insignificant, powerless. helleri: In honor of Edmund Heller (1875-1939) US naturalist and collector.

See more of the Family Furnariidae  peru aves

Distribution Mappuna thistletail

Voice


References:

    • Species range based on: Schulenberg, T. S., D. F. Stotz, and L. Rico. 2006. Distribution maps of the birds of Peru, version 1.0. Environment, Culture & Conservation (ECCo). The Field Museum.  http://fm2.fieldmuseum.org/uw_test/birdsofperu on 03/01/2017.