Stripe-breasted Spinetail
Encyclopedia
The Stripe-breasted Spinetail Synallaxis cinnamomea is a passerine
bird
found in the tropical New World
in Trinidad
, Tobago
, Colombia
and Venezuela
. This species is a fairly common resident breeder in hill forest, and in Tobago also occurs in lowland and scrub habitats.
It is a member of the South America
n bird family Furnariidae
, a group in which many species build elaborate clay nests, giving rise to the English
name for the family of "ovenbirds".
However, Stripe-breasted Spinetail constructs a spherical stick nest with a tubular entrance low in a bush, into which its two greenish white egg
s are laid.
The Stripe-breasted Spinetail is typically 14 cm long, and weighs 16 g. It is a slender bird with a longish tail. The upperparts and head are dark brown, and the wings are chestnut. The throat is white streaked with black,and the rest of the underparts are dark-streaked buff.
The sexes are similar, but there are several races. S. c. aveledoi is paler, S. c. striatipectus is darker and S. c. bolivari is whiter with a less streaked throat. The Tobago form S. c. terrestrisi is large and pale, and S. c. carri on Trinidad is dark and lightly streaked.
Stripe-breasted Spinetail is an insectivore
which is often difficult to see as it forages in undergrowth, but may be located by its calls, a querulous chew or a high-pitched nasal keep gcing.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
found in the tropical New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
in Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, Tobago
Tobago
Tobago is the smaller of the two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in the southern Caribbean, northeast of the island of Trinidad and southeast of Grenada. The island lies outside the hurricane belt...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
. This species is a fairly common resident breeder in hill forest, and in Tobago also occurs in lowland and scrub habitats.
It is a member of the South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n bird family Furnariidae
Ovenbird
The Ovenbird is a small songbird of the New World warbler family . This migratory bird breeds in eastern North America and moves south in winter.-Taxonomy:...
, a group in which many species build elaborate clay nests, giving rise to the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
name for the family of "ovenbirds".
However, Stripe-breasted Spinetail constructs a spherical stick nest with a tubular entrance low in a bush, into which its two greenish white egg
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
s are laid.
The Stripe-breasted Spinetail is typically 14 cm long, and weighs 16 g. It is a slender bird with a longish tail. The upperparts and head are dark brown, and the wings are chestnut. The throat is white streaked with black,and the rest of the underparts are dark-streaked buff.
The sexes are similar, but there are several races. S. c. aveledoi is paler, S. c. striatipectus is darker and S. c. bolivari is whiter with a less streaked throat. The Tobago form S. c. terrestrisi is large and pale, and S. c. carri on Trinidad is dark and lightly streaked.
Stripe-breasted Spinetail is an insectivore
Insectivore
An insectivore is a type of carnivore with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures. An alternate term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of eating insects....
which is often difficult to see as it forages in undergrowth, but may be located by its calls, a querulous chew or a high-pitched nasal keep gcing.