Ancash Tapaculo (Scytalopus affinis)

Identification & Behavior: ~11 cm (4.3 in). The Ancash Tapaculo is mouse gray with a variable amount of rufous with dusky barring on the flanks and rump.  The female is similar but has more rufous. The juvenile is brown with dusky barring throughout. The tail is short and often kept cocked.  It forages on or near the ground in humid montane forests, humid montane scrub interspersed with bunch grass, and Polylepis woodlands.  Due to their secretive habits, extreme similarity among species and the generally low light in the places they inhabit, positive identification of a tapaculo in the field is often impossible. However, their loud and stereotyped songs and calls are given frequently and constitute the safest way to identify them to the species level. It is very similar to the Puna Tapaculo and Unicolored Tapaculo but their ranges do not overlap.

Status: Endemic. The Ancash Tapaculo is uncommon in humid montane forests and scrub on the west slope of the Andes at elevations ranging between 3000-4600 m.

Name in Spanish: Tapaculo de Ancash.

Sub-species: Ancash Tapaculo (Scytalopus affinis) J. T. Zimmer, 1939.

Meaning of Name: Scytalopus: Gr. skutale or skutalon= stick, cudgel and pous, podos= foot. affinis: L. adfinis or affinis= related, allied, neighbourly.

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