Yellow-billed cacique

Yellow-billed cacique
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Icteridae
Genus: Amblycercus
Cabanis, 1851
Species: A. holosericeus
Binomial name
Amblycercus holosericeus
(Deppe, 1830)
Range of Amblycercus holosericeus

The yellow-billed cacique (Amblycercus holosericeus) is a species of cacique in the family Icteridae. It is monotypic within the genus Amblycercus.[2] There is some question as to whether or not it is a true cacique.[3][4]

The plumage is entirely black. The legs and feet are dark gray. The eye is yellow or yellow-orange. The bill is yellow with a gray tinge. Measures 23 cm (9.1 in) long.[5]

It is found in Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela.

Three subspecies are known:[6]

Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, and heavily degraded former forest.[1]

The yellow-billed cacique feeds on insects and other invertebrates, as well as some fruit. It uses a pecking technique similar to that of a woodpecker to gain access to the interior of branches and bamboo. In some areas, this species is a bamboo specialist, while in other areas, it feeds from a variety of vegetation.[3]

In the spring, the yellow-billed cacique builds a sturdy cup-shaped nest, which is unusual for its family, who tend to build hanging woven nests.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2012). "Amblycercus holosericeus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  2. "ITIS Report: Amblycercus". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 19 August 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 Ramos-Ordoñez, M.F.; Rodríguez-Flores, C.; Soberanes-González, C.; Arizmendi, M.C. (2010). Schulenberg, T.S., ed. "Yellow-billed Cacique (Amblycercus holosericeus)". Neotropical Birds Online. Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  4. "Yellow-billed Cacique (Amblycercus holosericeus)". The Internet Bird Collection. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  5. Garrigues, Richard; Dean, Robert (2007). The Birds of Costa Rica. Ithaca: Zona Tropical/Comstock/Cornell University Press. p. 320. ISBN 978-0-8014-7373-9.
  6. Gill, F.; Donsker, D., eds. (2016). "IOC World Bird List (v 6.1)". doi:10.14344/IOC.ML.6.1.
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