Great rufous woodcreeper

Xiphocolaptes major

Photo by Peter Schoen (Flickr)

Common name:

great rufous woodcreeper (en); arapaçu-do-campo (pt); grand grimpar (fr); trepatroncos colorado (es); fuchsroter baumsteiger (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Dendrocolaptidae

Range:

This South American species is found in northern Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia and south-western Brazil.

Size:

This large woodcreeper is 35 cm long and weighs 155 g.

Habitat:

They are found in tropical and subtropical dry forests and in tropical and subtropical moist lowland forests.

Diet:The great rufous woodcreeper feeds on insects, spiders, and other invertebrates, for which they search in clefts in bark and among mosses, lichens, and epiphytic plants growing on tree-limbs.

Breeding: Both parents build the nest either in old woodpecker holes or in natural cavities in trees. The nest is made of fine rootlets, pieces of bark, lichens, and strands of plant fibres. The female lays 2-3 white eggs which are incubated by both parents for 15-21 days. Both parents rear the young until fledging, which takes place 19-23 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status: LC (Least Concern)

The population size has not been quantified, but the species in described as uncommon. Still, they have a very large breeding range and there is no evidence for any declines or substantial threats, so the species is not threatened at present.