Ringed Antpipit

About the Ringed Antpipit

The ringed antpipit (Corythopis torquatus) is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in every mainland South American country except Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. The ringed antpipit was originally described as Conopophaga torquata, a member of the gnateater family Conopophagidae. Some authors later suggested that it belonged to family Formicariidae, the antthrushes. A study published in 1968 placed the genus in its current family, but there is still uncertainty about where it belongs. The ringed antpipit shares genus Corythopis with the southern antpipit (C. delalandi). They are treated as a superspecies and have been suggested to be conspecific.

The ringed antpipit has three subspecies, the nominate C. t. torquatus (Tschudi, 1844), C. t. sarayacuensis (Chubb, 1918), and C. t. anthoides (Pucheran, 1855). The ringed antpipit is 13.5 to 14 cm (5.3 to 5.5 in) long and weighs 15 to 18 g (0.53 to 0.63 oz). The sexes have the same plumage; males are larger than females. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a grayish brown crown, a faint whitish loral spot, and a faint whitish spot behind... Wikipedia →