Rufous-fronted Thornbird (Phacellodomus rufifrons)

Identification & Behavior: ~16.5 cm (6.4 in). The Rufous-fronted Thornbird has brown upperparts and tail. The forehead is rufous. The underparts are mostly pale brown with rufous flanks. It forages in pairs or small groups in scrub, edges of forests, and young second growth. It superficially resembles the Chestnut-backed Thornbird but their geographic ranges are not known to overlap.

Status: The Rufous-fronted Thornbird is common but local. It occurs in the Marañon Valley drainage and the Mayo and Huallaga drainages at elevations ranging between 350-1400 m. It also occurs in Co, Ec, Br, and Bo.

Name in Spanish: Espinero de Frente Rufa.

Sub-species: Rufous-fronted Thornbird (rufifrons peruvianus), Hellmayr, 1925.

Meaning of Name: Phacellodomus. Gr phakellos= bundle of twigs, domos= house. rufifrons: L. rufus= red, rufous and frons, frontis= forehead.

See more of the Family Furnariidae