Tawny Tit-Spinetail (Leptasthenura yanacensis)

Identification & Behavior: ~17.5 cm (6.8 in). The Tawny Tit-Spinetail has rufous-brown upperparts and tawny underparts. It has thin and buffy superciliary. The tail is very long and bright rufous. It forages nearly exclusively in stands of Polylepis woodlands and surrounding scrub. The rufous and tawny plumage is unmistakable in its specialized habitat. The Azara’s Spinetail ranges at lower elevations and it is not known to occur in the dry isolated patches of high elevation Polylepis woodlands.

Status: The Tawny Tit-Spinetail is rare and very patchily distributed in stands of Polylepis forests, with specific characteristics, at elevations ranging between 3950-4600 m. It also occurs in Bo.

Name in Spanish: Tijeral Leonado.

Sub-species: Tawny Tit-Spinetail (Leptasthenura yanacensis), Carriker, 1933.

Meaning of Name: Leptasthenura: Gr. leptos= thin and asthenes = weak and oura= tail. yanacensis: Originating from or associated with the locality of Yánac, Ancash, Peru.

See more of the Family Furnariidae