| Juan Fernandez Tit-tyrant Anairetes fernandezianus Chilean name: Cachudito de Juan Fernández |
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Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile January 2007 The Juan Fernandez Tit-tyrant is endemic to Robinson Crusoe Island in the Juan Fernandez Islands. There it is locally common and is even to be found in some of the degraded habitat near the settlement. |
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Because it is restricted to one island it is
classified as Near Threatened by Birdlife International and the population is felt
to be stable at about 5,000. It closely resembles Tufted Tit-tyrant A. parulus but it is larger, with heavier streaking on the breast while the belly is white without any hint of yellow. |
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I am intrigued by the crest. I must have taken over 100 photos of this species covering at least 10 individuals and in none are the crests more prominent than in these photos. By contrast, illustrations seem to consistently show a very erect and long crest. I appreciate that the female has a shorter crest than the male but I can't believe that I saw only females. | |||
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Maybe it was the time of year or maybe the crest is erected only as part of a display. One factor might have been that I didn't use playback to attract the birds. | |||
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