Phylloscartes beckeri
The Bahia Tyrannulet, *Phylloscartes beckeri*, is a diminutive and highly range-restricted passerine, immediately recognizable by its striking yellow underparts contrasting with a gray head and an expressive white eye-ring. Measuring approximately 11 cm (4.3 inches) in length and weighing around 7-8 grams, this small tyrannulet sports an olive-green back, two yellowish wing-bars, and dusky primary flight feathers. Its short, fine bill is well-suited for insect foraging, making it a quintessen...
This species exclusively inhabits the mid-story and canopy of humid, evergreen Atlantic Forest remnants, preferring mature forest with a dense understory. It is typically found at elevations between 200 and 900 meters above sea level.
The Bahia Tyrannulet is primarily insectivorous, feeding on small insects and spiders gleaned from foliage or captured during short, aerial sallies.
Bahia Tyrannulets are diurnal and highly active birds, constantly flitting through the forest mid-story and canopy with restless energy. They employ a classic "flycatching" foraging strategy, sallying out from perches to snatch insects in mid-air, often returning to the same or a nearby branch. T...
The Bahia Tyrannulet is endemic to a severely restricted and highly fragmented range within the Atlantic Forest biome of northeastern Brazil. Its known distribution is confined to a few isolated patches in southern Bahia and adjacent northeastern Minas Gerais, primarily concentrated around the Se...
Critically Endangered
- Discovered as recently as 1987 by biologist Johan Becker, and formally described to science in 1991, making it a relatively 'new' species to science. - It is one of Brazil's most threatened bird species, classified as Critically Endangered by the IUCN. - Its entire known global population is re...