South American Leaftosser (Sclerurus obscurior)

Identification & Behavior: ~16.5 cm (6.4 in). The South American Leaftosser is uniformly dark brown with a tawny throat and upper breast.  The tail is black, broad, and roundish. The bill is dusky gray and relatively long. It forages on the ground of terra firme forest in Amazonia where it picks and tosses dead leaves in search of prey items. It is similar to the Short-billed Leaftosser but is distinguished by larger size and longer bill. These two leaftossers are likely to overlap only on the range of the Short-billed Leaftosser, which is largely in northeast Peru.

Status: The South American Leaftosser is rare in Amazonia but appears to be uncommon along the foothill of the Andes and adjacent Amazonian lowlands. It is known to occur at elevations of up to 1000 m on the east slope of the Andes. The South American Leaftosser also occurs in Co, Ec, Br, and Bo.

Name in Spanish: Tira-hoja Sudamericano.

Sub-species: South American Leaftosser (Sclerurus obscurior peruvianus), C. Chubb, 1919.

Meaning of Name: Sclerurus: Gr. skleros= stiff and oura= tail. obscurior: L. obscurior, obscurioris, obscurus= darker, dark, obscure.

Note: The South American Leaftosser was formerly known as Tawny-throated Leaftosser.  See rationale.

See more of the Family Furnariidae