Rufous-browed Peppershrike - Cyclarhis gujanensis

Rufous-browed Peppershrike (Cyclarhis gujanensis)

Brazil

The rufous-browed Peppershrike belongs to the exclusively American family of the Vireos. The relationship of Vireos still seems unclear and, according to Ridgely & Tudor, recent DNA evidence does not show them to be close to the Tanagers and Buntings of the Emberizidae.

The first photo, taken in Manaus, is of the nominate subspecies, C. g. gujanensis showing the grey head, the rufous "brow", the yellow band across the chest and the whitish belly.

The second and third photos, taken in the centre of São Paulo city, show the subspecies C.g. ochrocephala which has a brown crown and is generally much duller.

The Rufous-browed Peppershrike is generally regarded as a forest bird which eats insects and caterpillars. It is a noted singer and is more often heard than seen.

What is this bird doing in the middle of São Paulo city? Is it an escaped cage bird or has the Rufous-browed Peppershrike successfully colonised cities where there are sufficient trees for it to survive?

Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Chapada Diamantina, Bahia, Brazil, July 2002 - click for larger image

There are illustrations in Ridgely & Tudor, Volume 1, Plate 8 and in Sick, Plate 40.

Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Borba, Amazonas, Brazil, August 2004 - click for larger image

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