Throughout its broad circum-Amazonian range, the White-throated Spadebill is represented by some 14 subspecies, which are considered to constitute two groups, the Central American-Andean albogularis group, and the lowland mystaceus group, although the southeast Peruvian and northern Bolivian subspecies P. m. partridgei appears to form a ‘bridge’ between them. The White-throated Spadebill is a typically small, large-headed, and stub-tailed Platyrinchus, which is often relatively commoner and more easily observed than other spadebills, although knowledge of its vocalizations is often necessary to find it. The species is an inhabitant of the undergrowth of humid lowland and montane forests, as well as tall second growth and gallery woodland, and its overall range encompasses from sea level to over 2150 m, although the White-throated Spadebill is generally less numerous at higher elevations within this range.