Spotted Tanager (Ixothraupis punctata)

Identification & Behavior: ~13 cm (5.1 in). The Spotted Tanager is mostly green above and whitish below with dense dusky specks on the upperparts and underparts. It forages in the canopy of montane forests. It is similar to the Yellow-bellied Tanager but is distinguished by having speckled underparts without yellow on the belly.

Status: The Spotted Tanager is fairly common in montane forests of the east slope of the Andes in disjunct populations generally at elevations ranging between 600-2200 m. It also occurs in Ec, Br, and Bo.

Name in Spanish: Tangara Moteada.

Sub-species: Spotted Tanager (Ixothraupis punctata zamorae) Chapman, 1925.   E slope of Andes in Ecuador (Sucumbíos) and N Peru (Moyobamba).
(Ixothraupis punctata perenensis), Chapman, 1925.  E slope of Andes in C Peru (Junín, mainly in Chanchamayo area).
(Ixothraupis punctata annectens), J. T. Zimmer, 1943.  E slope in SE Peru (Inambari region).

Meaning of Name: Ixothraupis: Gr. Ixos= mistletoe and thraupis= unknown small bird, perhaps some sort of finch.. punctata: L. punctum= spot, punctatus, pungere= spotted, to puncture.

See more of the Family Thraupidae