Sumichrast's wren (''Hylorchilus sumichrasti''), also known as the slender-billed wren, is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

in the family Troglodytidae. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Taxonomy and systematics

Sumichrast's wren is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

. A former subspecies, ''Hylorchilus sumichrasti navai'' was elevated to species status as Nava's wren in the 1990s.Soberanes-González, C. A., C. I. Rodríguez-Flores, M. d. C. Arizmendi, and T. S. Schulenberg (2020). Sumichrast's Wren (''Hylorchilus sumichrasti''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (T. S. Schulenberg, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.sumwre1.01 retrieved June 2, 2021 The common name of this species commemorates the Mexican naturalist François Sumichrast.

Description

Sumichrast's wren is long; a female weighed . The adults have uniform deep brown crowns, napes, and backs; their rumps are a sooty brown. Their chin and throat are buff that deepens through the breast into the flanks and belly. The breast has faint dark bars and the belly has tiny white dots. The juvenile is similar, but its throat has a dirty look and faint dusky scales, its underparts are darker, and the breast and belly markings are fainter.

Distribution and habitat

Sumichrast's wren occurs in a small area of Mexico, from central

Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...

into northern

Oaxaca Oaxaca, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca, is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of the Mexico, United Mexican States. It is divided into municipalities of Oaxaca, 570 munici ...

. It inhabits the understory of humid forest, both

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

and

semi-deciduous Semi-deciduous or semi-evergreen is a botanical term which refers to plants that lose their foliage for a very short period, when old leaves fall off and new foliage growth is starting. This phenomenon occurs in tropical and sub-tropical wood ...

, and also shady coffee plantations. However, it is found only in scattered sites that have extensive limestone outcroppings. In elevation it ranges from .

Behavior

Feeding

The diet of Sumichrast's wren is primarily

arthropod Arthropods ( ) are invertebrates in the phylum Arthropoda. They possess an arthropod exoskeleton, exoskeleton with a cuticle made of chitin, often Mineralization (biology), mineralised with calcium carbonate, a body with differentiated (Metam ...

s and other invertebrates such as snails and worms, and also includes small fruit as a minor component. It forages on and very near the ground with hops and short flights, probing into crevices for prey and occasionally snatching a flying insect that passes it.

Breeding

Active Sumichrast's wren nests have been found in May. The nest is a cup made of grass, roots, and other materials and placed in a cave or crevice. Both sexes provide the materials but only the female builds it. The clutch size is three. The male brings food to the female during incubation and both sexes provision nestlings.

Vocalization

The male Sumichrast's wren sings "a varied descending series of loud, rich whistles

The female sings "a simple phrase consisting of a single repeated syllable". One of its calls i

Status

The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

has assessed Sumichrast's wren as Near Threatened. "This species has a small range and a moderately small population. Both its range and population are probably in decline owing to increasing habitat loss and degradation."

References

External links

Image at ADW
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2225023 Sumichrast's wren Sumichrast's wren Taxonomy articles created by Polbot