Andean Negrito

About the Andean Negrito

The Andean negrito (Lessonia oreas) is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae, the tyrant flycatchers. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. The Andean negrito was originally described as Centrites oreas. The species now shares genus Lessonia with the austral negrito (L. rufa); that genus was erected in 1832 by William Swainson. The two were long considered conspecific. Late in the twentieth century they were separated based primarily on plumage differences, and a 2014 publication added differences in feather structure and courtship displays to the evidence.

The Andean negrito is monotypic. The Andean negrito is 12.5 to 13 cm (4.9 to 5.1 in) long. Adult males are mostly black with a pale rufous back. The inner webs of their flight feathers are silvery white that makes the wing look pale in flight but are seldom visible at rest. Adult females are smaller than males. They have a mostly blackish brown head and upperparts with a dull rufous back. The inner webs of their flight feathers are sandy brown. Their chin is whitish, their breast and belly sooty with rufous sides on the breast, and their crissum blackish. Juveniles... Wikipedia →