Scaly-throated leaftosser

Sclerurus guatemalensis

Photo by Arthur Grosset (Tree of Life)

Common name:

scaly-throated leaftosser (en); vira-folhas-escamado (pt); sclérure écaillé (fr); tirahojas guatemalteco (es); fleckenbrust-laubwender (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Furnariidae

Range:

These birds are found in Central America, from southern Mexico down to Panama.

Size:

They are 16-17 cm long and weigh 30-35 g.

Habitat:

The scaly-throated leaftosser is found in tropical and subtropical moist forests, both in the lowlands and in mountainous areas up to an altitude of 1.250 m.

Diet:

They eat small invertebrates which they find among the leaf litter in the forest ground.

Breeding:

Scaly-throated leaftossers breed in May-December. The nest is a shallow cup made of the rachis of compound leaves, placed in a chamber at the end of a burrow, with a long entrance tunnel. It is generally located in a vertical cliff or clay wall, next to a stream or trail. There the female lays 2 white eggs which are incubated by both parents for 21 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 15 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status – LC (Least Concern)

This species has a relatively large breeding range and a global population estimated at 20.000-50.000 individuals. This population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction, but it is not considered threatened at present.