Pseudoseisura lophotes
The Brown Cacholote, *Pseudoseisura lophotes*, is a striking, medium-sized ovenbird distinguished by its prominent, shaggy crest of rufous feathers that gives it an almost perpetually surprised appearance. Measuring approximately 20-23 cm (8-9 inches) in length and weighing between 48-71 grams, this robust passerine exhibits an overall rufous-brown plumage, darker on the back and wings, with a paler, often buffy, belly and throat. Its strong, slightly decurved bill is ideal for probing. There...
Found in dry to semi-humid open woodlands, thorny scrub, Chaco forest, Cerrado, and gallery forest edges, typically at lower elevations up to about 1,500 meters.
Primarily insectivorous, feeding on a variety of insects, spiders, and other invertebrates, which they glean from foliage, bark, and the ground.
Brown Cacholotes are highly social and conspicuous birds, usually observed in pairs or small family groups that maintain a year-round presence within their territories. They are diurnal, spending their days actively foraging and vocalizing, often roosting communally in their elaborate stick nests...
The Brown Cacholote is widely distributed across the dry and semi-arid regions of central South America, primarily within the Chaco and Cerrado biomes. Its breeding range extends from southeastern Bolivia and southwestern Brazil, south through western Paraguay, and into northern and central Argen...
Least Concern
- The Brown Cacholote is an 'Ovenbird' (Furnariidae family), but unlike many of its relatives, it doesn't build a clay 'oven' nest; instead, it constructs a massive, enclosed stick structure. - Their nests can be so large, sometimes over a meter in diameter, that they are often mistaken for the n...