Caatinga Cacholote

The Caatinga cacholote (''Pseudoseisura cristata'') is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is endemic to Brazil.

Taxonomy and systematics

The Caatinga cacholote is monotypic. However, what is now the grey-crested cacholote (''P. unirufa'') was previously considered a subspecies of it. The two-subspecies ''P. cristata'' was then called the rufous cacholote. The two taxa were split following the data in a paper published in 2000. Confusingly, and contrary to the suggestion of the 2000 paper's authors, the South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society and the Clements taxonomy call ''P. unirufa'' the rufous cacholote.Zimmer, K., and Whittaker, A. (2000). ''The Rufous Cacholote (Furnariidae: Pseudoseisura) is two species.'' Condor. 102(2): 409–422Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 28 September 2023. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved October 20, 2023Clements, J. F., P.C. Rasmussen, T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, A. Spencer, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2023. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2023. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ retrieved October 28, 2023

Description

The Caatinga cacholote is long. It is a large, crested, furnariid with a long bill. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults are mostly bright reddish-rufous that is somewhat paler on their underparts. Their flight feathers have fuscous tips and the ends of the tail feathers lack barbs. Their iris is yellow. Juveniles have a shorter crest than adults, with some dusky streaks or bars on the face and underparts and a bluish gray iris.Remsen, Jr., J. V. (2020). Caatinga Cacholote (''Pseudoseisura cristata''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.caacac1.01 retrieved November 18, 2023

Distribution and habitat

The Caatinga cacholote is found in eastern Brazil in an area bounded roughly by eastern Maranhão, Paraíba, and central Minas Gerais. It inhabits the woodlands and scrub of the Caatinga biome and also tropical deciduous forest. Away from areas of dense human population it is common around dwellings. In elevation it ranges from .

Behavior

Movement

The Caatinga cacholote is a year-round resident throughout its range.

Feeding

The Caatinga cacholote feeds on arthropods and plant material. It usually forages in pairs and usually on the ground, where it probes and digs for its prey.

Breeding

The Caatinga cacholote's breeding season has not been defined. Though the species is believed to be mostly monogamous, several observations of breeding pairs included up to four apparent adults, all of whom provisioned nestlings. It is not known if the helpers are related or not to the primary pair. Its nest is a mass of thorny sticks that is typically twice as long as it is wide, placed in a tree fork or on a utility pole. An entrance tunnel near its top leads to an inner chamber lined with pieces of bark and snake skin. One nest in Ceará incorporated a large number of anthropogenic materials including razor blades, a fork, plastic items and fragments, paper, and barbed wire.Gonalalves Diotaiuti, L.; Mendonca Bezerra, C.; José Soares, C.; Mariana Costa, L.; Eremelinda Barbosa, S. (2018) “Description of an Amazing Nest of Caatinga Cachalote ic''Pseudoseisura Cristata'' Infested by ''Psammolestes tertius'' in Taua, State of Ceara ic Northeastern Brazil” Revista De Patologia Tropical / Journal of Tropical Pathology, Goiânia, v. 47, n. 2, p. 125–131. DOI: 10.5216/rpt.v47i2.54214. Available at: https://magazines.ufg.br/iptsp/article/view/54214. Accessed November 18, 2023 The clutch size, incubation period, time to fledging, and further details of parental care are not known.

Vocalization

The Caatinga cacholote typically sings in duet. One bird, thought to be the male, "gives a long series of well-spaced, very loud, piercing 'tjew' notes". The presumed female replies with "a series of 15–35 well-spaced buzzy 'zjeep' notes". The species' call is "a single 'chuk' ".

Status

The IUCN has assessed the Caatinga cacholote as being of Least Concern. It has large range and an unknown population size that is believed to be increasing. No immediate threats have been identified. It is considered common "especially where ''caatinga'' sseverely degraded or overgrazed" and has "extended its range locally where forest has been cleared". In addition, it occurs in several protected areas.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q606661

Pseudoseisura
Birds of the Caatinga
Endemic birds of Brazil
Birds described in 1824
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot