Cinereous Antshrike Thamnomanes caesius

Brazilian name: ipecuá

Male  Cinereous Antshrike, Carajás,
	Pará, Brazil October
	 2005 - click for larger image Carajás, Pará, Brazil
October 2005

The Cinereous Antshrike is distributed in most of the Amazon Basin with a disjunct population in eastern Brazil from Paraíba to Rio de Janeiro. It is found in the lower and middle levels of the rain forest but is rarely found in secondary growth.
There are several similar looking all grey antshrikes and I had some interesting input from Rasmus Boegh to help me identify this individual. See the thread on BirdForum.

It is a key or "sentinel" member of mixed species flocks and it helps to keep the flock together with its constant vocalisations as well as alerting the flock when predators appear. It is usually seen perching fairly upright on nearly horizontal branches from where it sallies to catch its insect prey on the wing or picking it from the leaves.

There are recordings and a distribution map on xeno-canto .
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