Platyrinchus cancrominus
The Stub-tailed Spadebill (Platyrinchus cancrominus) is a diminutive and uniquely adapted member of the Tyrannidae family, characteristic of humid Neotropical forest understories. Measuring a mere 9-10 cm (3.5-3.9 inches) in length and weighing around 8-12 grams (0.28-0.42 oz), its most striking feature is its disproportionately broad, flattened, and triangular bill, which gives the genus its 'spadebill' moniker. Its plumage features olive-green upperparts, a greyish head with a prominent whi...
This species primarily inhabits the dense understory of humid tropical evergreen and semi-deciduous forests, including secondary growth and forest edges, typically at low to mid-elevations from sea level up to around 1,200 meters.
It feeds almost exclusively on small insects and spiders, which it gleans or captures in short aerial sallies from the underside of leaves and branches.
The Stub-tailed Spadebill is a solitary and remarkably inconspicuous bird, often remaining motionless for extended periods, camouflaged within the dense foliage. Its primary foraging strategy involves sally-gleaning or hover-gleaning, where it rapidly darts from a low perch to pluck small arthrop...
The Stub-tailed Spadebill is a resident species found across a broad geographical range spanning southern Mexico through Central America and into northern South America. In Mexico, its distribution extends from Veracruz and Oaxaca south through the Yucatán Peninsula and Chiapas. It continues its ...
Least Concern
- The Stub-tailed Spadebill's unusually broad and flat bill is a highly specialized adaptation for its unique foraging technique of plucking insects from the underside of leaves. - Despite its wide distribution, it is notoriously difficult to observe due to its small size, cryptic olive plumage, ...