Formicarius colma
The Rufous-capped Antthrush (Formicarius colma) is a charismatic yet elusive denizen of the Amazonian understory, measuring approximately 18 cm (7.1 inches) in length and weighing around 40-45 grams. Its striking field marks include a diagnostic bright rufous cap, a contrasting black face and throat, and a mostly brownish-grey body, making it a distinctive sight for the patient birder. Taxonomically, it belongs to the family Formicariidae, a group of Neotropical suboscine passerines known as ...
This species primarily inhabits the dark, humid understory of lowland terra firme and várzea forests, typically below 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) in elevation. It prefers areas with dense leaf litter and tangled vegetation.
Its diet consists mainly of insects, particularly ants, beetles, and crickets, along with other small invertebrates like spiders and centipedes, foraging by gleaning and probing in the leaf litter.
The Rufous-capped Antthrush is a largely solitary and highly secretive diurnal bird, spending most of its time hopping and running on the forest floor with its tail cocked. It forages by flicking through leaf litter with its bill or feet, gleaning insects and other small arthropods from the groun...
The Rufous-capped Antthrush is widely distributed throughout the Amazon Basin of South America, extending from eastern Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru eastward across southern Venezuela, the Guianas (Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana), and northern Brazil, reaching south into parts of northern Bolivia....
Least Concern
- The Rufous-capped Antthrush is notoriously difficult to observe, often only identified by its distinctive, mournful whistle-song emanating from the dense forest undergrowth. - Unlike many antbirds, true antthrushes generally do not follow army ant swarms, instead preferring to forage independen...