Rose-breasted Chat

About the Rose-breasted Chat

The rose-breasted chat (Granatellus pelzelni) is a species of bird in the family Cardinalidae, the cardinals or cardinal grosbeaks. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela. The genus Granatellus was traditionally placed in family Parulidae, the New World warblers. Studies of DNA sequences in the early 2000s resulted in its being moved to its present family. The rose-breasted chat and the other two members of its genus, red-breasted chat (G. venustus) and grey-throated chat (G. sallaei) form a superspecies.

The rose-breasted chat has two subspecies, the nominate Granatellus pelzelni pelzelni and G. p. paraensis. The latter might be a species in its own right ("rose-bellied chat"), based on differences in plumage and vocalizations from the nominate.

The nominate rose-breasted chat is 12 to 12.5 cm (4.7 to 4.9 in) long and weighs 10 to 12.5 g (0.35 to 0.44 oz). The male has a black head with a white supercilium, blue-gray upperparts, and a black tail. Its throat is white with a thin black line separating it from the rose-red breast, belly, and vent area. It has white flanks separating the blue... Wikipedia →