Yellow-bellied Tanager

About the Yellow-bellied Tanager

The yellow-bellied tanager (Ixothraupis xanthogastra) is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is across northern and western South America, being found from Venezuela east into Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, south into Brazil and Bolivia, and east into Guyana. It mostly inhabits lowland tropical forests, woodland edges, and secondary growth. It is, on average, it is 11–12.2 cm (4.3–4.8 in) long and weighs 14.1–17.9 g (0.5–0.6 oz). It is largely green with a pattern of black spots, with a clean yellow belly and unspotted flanks. It is classified as being of least concern by the IUCN.

The yellow-bellied tanager was formally described by the English ornithologist Philip Sclater in 1851 as Calliste xanthogastra based on specimens from the Rio Negro of Peru. The specific epithet is derived from the Greek words meaning "yellow-bellied". The species was formerly placed in the genus Tangara.

The yellow-bellied tanager has two recognized subspecies: I. x. xanthogastra (Sclater, 1851): The nominate subspecies, it is found across much of Amazonia, from Venezuela west to Colombia, east to eastern Ecuador and Peru, and south to western Brazil and northern Bolivia.

I. x. phelpsi... Wikipedia →