Large-footed Tapaculo (Scytalopus macropus)

Identification & Behavior: ~14.5 cm (5.7 in). The adult Large-footed Tapaculo is uniformly blackish and it is also the largest member of the genus Scytalopus. It has a relatively short tail often kept cocked.  It forages near the ground in thick foliage along creeks and streams. 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. The Large-footed Tapaculo is larger than the similar Trilling Tapaculo and Tschudi’s Tapaculo.

Status: Endemic. The Large-footed Tapaculo is uncommon to rare in montane forests of the east slope of the Andes at elevations ranging between 3400-3500 m.

Name in Spanish: Tapaculo de Pata Grande.

Sub-species: Large-footed Tapaculo (Scytalopus macropus), Berlepsch and Stolzmann, 1896.

Meaning of Name: Scytalopus: Gr. skutale or skutalon= stick, cudgel and pous, podos= foot. macropus: Gr. makros= long and pous, podos= foot. makropous, makropodos= long-footed.

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