Guttulate Foliage-gleaner Syndactyla guttulata Scientific name definitions

The Guttulate (or Guttulated) Foliage-gleaner is endemic to northern Venezuela, where it ranges from the state of Falcón east to Monagas. Like several other foliage-gleaners, the generic assignment of this species has been occasionally questioned, with some authors remarking that its plumage, vocals, and foraging behavior are suggestive of it being more closely aligned with the Thripadectes treehunters. This foliage-gleaner occurs in montane evergreen forest, where singles or pairs are most typically encountered within mixed-species foraging flocks in the undergrowth to midstory, and its acrobatic behavior can draw the observer’s attention. The Guttulate Foliage-gleaner is a largely dark brown furnariid, with a more rufous-colored tail and a white throat, while the mantle, cheeks, and most of the underparts are all moderately to heavily streaked with white.

17–19 cm; 34–38 g. Dark and heavily streaked furnariid with laterally compressed wedge-shaped bill (more so than congeners). Has faint supercilium dull ochra­ceous, becoming paler posteriorly, auriculars dark brown with narrow buff streaks, rest of face dark brown with small buff to ochraceous spots; top of head dark rufescent brown, paler rusty spots on forehead, fine rusty streaks on crown; back dark rufescent brown with blackish-margined broad rusty to whitish-buff streaks, rump and uppertail-coverts reddish-chestnut; wings mostly dark rufescent brown; tail graduated, rectrices with blunt tips, reddish-chestnut; throat yellowish, feathers of lower throat margined dark brown; breast and belly dark brown with conspicuous buffy streaks, fading on lower belly, undertail-coverts more rufescent; iris dark brown; upper mandible mostly dark grey to blackish, lower mandible pale horn-grey with darker grey upper base and central line; tarsus and toes olive-grey. Sexes alike. Juvenile undescribed. Race pallida described as like nominate but feather margins of upperparts paler, rump and tail paler rufous.

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Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Song a harsh, accelerating “cjak, cjak, czak czak-zak-zak-zak-za-za-za”, sometimes followed by a few more notes at end; call a harsh, rough “chak”.