Masked Gnatcatcher
Encyclopedia
The Masked Gnatcatcher is a small active insectivorous songbird
, found in northern Argentina
, Uruguay
, Paraguay
, Bolivia
and southern and central Brazil
. It is found in a wide range of semi-open habitats, including dry forest and Cerrado
. It is generally fairly common, and consequently considered to be of least concern
by BirdLife International
and IUCN.
Its jizz
is similar to that of other gnatcatchers
; a small bird with a relatively long thin bill, a long frequently cocked tail, and grey upperparts. The central rectrices are black, while the outer are white (consequently, the tail appears primarily black from above, white from below), and there is a white patch in the wing (caused by broad white edging to the tertials). Males of the southern and western group (including subspecies
saturata), the Masked Gnatcatchers in the strict sense, have grey underparts and a broad black mask. Females lack the mask, but instead have a black patch behind the eyes on the auriculars. The northern nominate subspecies dumicola is distinctive, with white underparts in both sexes, and a narrow black mask in the male. It may be a separate species, Berlepsch's Gnatcatcher.
Songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds . Another name that is sometimes seen as scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin oscen, "a songbird"...
, found in northern Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
, Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
and southern and central Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. It is found in a wide range of semi-open habitats, including dry forest and Cerrado
Cerrado
The Cerrado, is a vast tropical savanna ecoregion of Brazil, particularly in the states of Gioas and Minas Gerais...
. It is generally fairly common, and consequently considered to be of least concern
Least Concern
Least Concern is an IUCN category assigned to extant taxon or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, Near Threatened, or Conservation Dependent...
by BirdLife International
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources...
and IUCN.
Its jizz
Jizz (birding)
Jizz is a term used by birders to describe the overall impression or appearance of a bird garnered from such features as shape, posture, flying style or other habitual movements, size and colouration combined with voice, habitat and location....
is similar to that of other gnatcatchers
Polioptila
Polioptila is a genus of bird in the Polioptilidae family.It contains the following species:* Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Polioptila caerulea* Cuban Gnatcatcher, Polioptila lembeyei* California Gnatcatcher, Polioptila californica...
; a small bird with a relatively long thin bill, a long frequently cocked tail, and grey upperparts. The central rectrices are black, while the outer are white (consequently, the tail appears primarily black from above, white from below), and there is a white patch in the wing (caused by broad white edging to the tertials). Males of the southern and western group (including subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
saturata), the Masked Gnatcatchers in the strict sense, have grey underparts and a broad black mask. Females lack the mask, but instead have a black patch behind the eyes on the auriculars. The northern nominate subspecies dumicola is distinctive, with white underparts in both sexes, and a narrow black mask in the male. It may be a separate species, Berlepsch's Gnatcatcher.