Scaled Antpitta

About the Scaled Antpitta

The scaled antpitta (Grallaria guatimalensis) is a species of bird in the family Grallariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela It has occurred as a vagrant on Trinidad. There is also a single record in Belize.

The scaled antpitta has these 10 subspecies: The scaled antpitta and the moustached antpitta (G. alleni) form a superspecies, and some authors have suggested that they are conspecific. Grallaria antpittas are a "wonderful group of plump and round antbirds whose feathers are often fluffed up...they have stout bills [and] very short tails". The scaled antpitta is 15 to 19 cm (5.9 to 7.5 in) long and weighs 70 to 98 g (2.5 to 3.5 oz). The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies G. g. guatimalensis have a pale olive brownish forecrown with fine black scaling and a gray crown and nape. They have whitish or buffy lores, olive brown ear coverts with thin streaks, and blue-gray skin around their eye. Their back and wing coverts are olive brown with black feather edges that give the eponymous scaled... Wikipedia →