Plain-winged antshrike

Plain-winged antshrike
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Thamnophilidae
Genus:	Thamnophilus
Species:	T. schistaceus
Binomial name
Thamnophilus schistaceus D'Orbigny, 1837

The plain-winged antshrike (Thamnophilus schistaceus), sometimes called the black-capped antshrike

The nominate subspecies of the plain-winged antshrike is found in Peru from south of the Marañón and Amazon rivers into Bolivia as far as central Santa Cruz Department and in southern Amazonian Brazil. In Brazil its range is roughly bounded by the lower Juruá River in Amazonas State, the Tocantins River in Pará and Tocantins, Acre, Rondônia, northern and western Mato Grosso, and southern Pará. Subspecies T. s. capitalis is found from Vaupés Department in extreme eastern Colombia east and south into west-central Amazonian Brazil to the Solimões River (upper Amazon) as far east as the Madeira River. Subspecies T. s. heterogynus is found from southeastern Colombia's Meta Department south through eastern Ecuador into northeastern Peru north of the Marañón and Amazon.^{[6][2][7][8][9]}

The plain-winged antshrike inhabits humid evergreen forest, both seasonally flooded forest in the lowlands and drier terra firme upland forest. It favors the understorey to midstorey of the forest interior and also occurs in dense vegetation at the forest edges and in nearby secondary forest. In elevation it is found mostly below 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in Ecuador, below 800 m (2,600 ft) in Colombia, up to 1,300 m (4,300 ft) in Peru, and from sea level to 900 m (3,000 ft) in Brazil.^{[6][2][7][8][9]}

Behavior

Movement

The plain-winged antshrike is presumed to be a year-round resident throughout its range.^[6]

Feeding

The plain-winged antshrike's diet is not known in detail but is mostly insects and other

The plain-winged antshrike's breeding season has not been defined. Four active nests have been described; they were found in February and October in Brazil and in March and September in Peru. They were shallow cups made of coarse plant fibers and other plant material and covered with moss, lichen, or fungus-covered twigs. They were hidden among foliage suspended by their rim in a branch fork within 2 m (7 ft) of the ground. Their clutches of two eggs were incubated by both parents during the day. The incubation period, time to fledging, and other details of parental care are not known.[6]

Vocalization

The plain-winged antshrikes's song differs somewhat among the subspecies. In general it is "a slightly accelerating series of similar notes at same pitch, ending in sharply downslurred note that 'falls off' to a lower pitch". Both the number of notes and pace vary; the song of subspecies T. s. heterogynus has more abrupt notes, a faster pace, and a lower pitch on the first note than those of the other two subspecies. The species' calls include a "long, slightly downslurred, somewhat plaintive note" that often repeated for a long period, a "soft nasal note", a "quiet whistled note", and in alarm "short growls given rapidly".^[6]

Status

The