Páramo Tapaculo

About the Páramo Tapaculo

The Paramo tapaculo (Scytalopus opacus) is a species of bird in the family Rhinocryptidae. It is found in the Andes of Ecuador and southern Colombia. The Paramo tapaculo was originally described as a subspecies of Magellanic tapaculo (Scytalopus magellanicus) and then as a subspecies of paramillo tapaculo (S. canus). Krabbe and Cadena (2010) showed that they have very different voices. Based on that data, The South American Classification Committee (SACC) of the American Ornithologists' Union (now the American Ornithological Society, AOS) elevated it to species rank and the International Ornithological Congress (IOC) and Clements taxonomy followed suit.

The Paramo tapaculo is monophyletic. The former subspecies S. o. androstictus was elevated by the SACC to species status as the Loja tapaculo in July 2020 and by the IOC in January 2021. The Paramo tapaculo resembles other Scytalopus tapaculos. It is approximately 10.5 cm (4.1 in) long. Males weigh 13.9 to 17.9 g (0.49 to 0.63 oz) and females 13.4 to 16 g (0.47 to 0.56 oz). Males are very dark gray above and medium to dark gray on most of the underside. The flanks and vent area are tawny... Wikipedia →