See

discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: http://www.researchgate.net/publication/278245032

TAWNY-THROATED LEAFTOSSER SCLERURUS

MEXICANUS SCLATER, 1857 (AVES:
PASSERIFORMES: FURNARIIDAE:
SCLERURINAE) FROM CORDILLERA DE
MÉRIDA, ANDEAN VENEZUELA

ARTICLE · AUGUST 2009

DOWNLOADS VIEWS

3 5

5 AUTHORS, INCLUDING:

Andrés M. Orellana-B Andres Chacon-Ortiz

Universidad Nacional Experimental del Tác… Universidad Nacional Experimental del Tác…
24 PUBLICATIONS 20 CITATIONS 5 PUBLICATIONS 16 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Available from: Andrés M. Orellana-B

Retrieved on: 22 July 2015
Rev. Ecol. Lat. Am. Recibido 06 06 2009
Vol 14 Nº1-2 pp 13-17 Aceptado 27 07 2009
ISSN1012-2494 Publicado 31 08 2009
Depósito Legal pp 83-0168 © 2009 CIRES

TAWNY-THROATED LEAFTOSSER
SCLERURUS MEXICANUS SCLATER, 1857
(AVES: PASSERIFORMES: FURNARIIDAE: SCLERURINAE)
FROM CORDILLERA DE MÉRIDA, ANDEAN VENEZUELA
ORELLANA* Andrés; Andrés CHACÓN-ORTIZ*; Zahylis ZAMBRANO○;
Nelson SÁNCHEZ◘ & Simón RAMÍREZ◘
aorell@unet.edu.ve; aecortiz@unet.edu.ve, zahylzam@ula.ve, pirrosanchez@hotmail.com
*Centro de Estudio de Vectores de Enfermedades,
Universidad Nacional Experimental del Táchira, Venezuela.
○
Laboratorio de Sistemas de Información Geográfica. Departamento de Ciencias Sociales.
Universidad de los Andes, Táchira, Venezuela.
◘
Gerencia de Gestión Ambiental. Desarrollo Uribante-Caparo,
Táchira, Venezuela.

ABSTRACT
This paper confirms the presence of the Tawny-throated leaftosser (Sclerurus mexicanus Sclater, 1857,
Furnariidae) in the Cordillera de Mérida in Andean Venezuela. This is the first vouchered record of this
somewhat elusive bird, previously documented by presumed sightings in this area. The patchy distribution
across the continent may reflect an artifical distribution from México to South Brazil due to inadequate
samping.
Key words: Aves. Distribution. Neotropical. Sclerurus mexicanus. Suboscine.Venezuela.

RASPA HOJA PECHIRROJIZO

SCLERURUS MEXICANUS SCLATER, 1857
(AVES: PASSERIFORMES: FURNARIIDAE: SCLERURINAE)
DE LA CORDILLERA DE MÉRIDA, EN LOS ANDES DE VENEZUELA

RESUMEN
Se confirma la presencia del Raspa hoja pechirrojizo (Sclerurus mexicanus Sclater, 1857, Furnariidae) en la
Cordillera de Mérida de los Andes de Venezuela. Es el primer registro documentado por material testigo de
este esquivo pájaro previamente documentado por presuntos avistamientos en esta región. La distribución
discontinua, que se reporta desde México hasta el sur del Brasil, puede ser el reflejo artifical de las
inadecuadas técnicas de recolección que se ha empleado.
Palabras clave: Aves. Distribución. Neotrópico. Sclerurus mexicanus. Suboscine. Venezuela.

INTRODUCTION schizorhinal; the syrinx lacking horns on the vocal

Furnariidae is a family of passerine birds native to
Central and South America which comprise 236
species (Sibley & Alhquist, 1990; Bernis et al.,
2003; Fjeldså et al, 2005). These are generally
recognized by their small to medium size, varying
degrees of brown, black and rufous coloration; and
either soft or somewhat stiff tail reminiscent of the
related Dendrocolaptidae. Furnariid skulls are
processes; and the anterior toes free (not united to
the full length of the basal phalanges); or the middle
Ficha
ORELLANA Andrés; Andrés CHACÓN-ORTIZ; Zahylis
ZAMBRANO, Nelson SÁNCHEZ & Simón RAMÍREZ, 2009.-
Tawny-throated leaftosser Sclerurus mexicanus Sclater, 1857
(Aves: Passeriformes: Furnariidae: Sclerurinae) from Cordillera
de Mérida, andean Venezuela. Rev. Ecol. Lat. Am. Vol 14 Nº1-2
pp 13-17 ISSN 1012 2494

13
and outer toes united having the inner toe free
(Vaurie, 1980). In Venezuela, this family is repre-
sented by 59 species (Phelps & Meyer de Schauen-
see, 1979; Hilty, 2003). As a whole, the family is
often known as ovenbirds or antbirds, but other
common names depict some behavioral and
physical attributes, which reflects a wide variety of
habits/habitats and body habitus (Fjeldså et al,
2005; Irestedt et al., 2006). Due to their somber
coloration and secretive behavior, most species are
difficult to observe in the field, in which case, the
dark understory and dense vegetation are frequent
scenarios while individuals forage for meal. This
last is the case for the six species of Sclerurus, and
particularly the Twany-throated leaftosser
(Sclerurus mexicanus Sclater, 1857), whose
distribution is wanting from any of the Andean
states that comprises the Cordillera de Mérida in
Venezuela, where no definite record exists (Phelps
& Meyer de Schauensee, 1979; Vaurie, 1980; Hilty,
2003).
Figure 1. Map showing locality of capture (circle) of Sclerurus mexicanus andinus at Siberia Camp, SW Cordillera de Mérida,
Táchira state, Venezuela (state boundaries shown). Other localities mentioned in text as observation sites are depicted in
numbered squares: 1- La Azulita, 2- Socopó, 3- Barinitas.
14
DISTRIBUTION
The distribution of S. mexicanus is very patchy and
widely interrupted, although it extends extensively
from central México to eastern coastal Brazil
(Vaurie, 1980). In Venezuela, recorded distribution
embraces an isolated nucleus in the Sierra de Perijá
in the northwest at Zulia state, and reappears south
of the Orinoco in central and southern Amazonas
state across Bolívar to northern Guyana (andinus
Chapman, 1914). These two geographical clusters
are isolated from a larger transandean domain that is
apparently continuous from Costa Rica to Bolivia
(pullus Bangs, 1902, obscurior Hartert, 1901 and
peruvianus Chubb, 1919). One other much smaller
patch is found within French Guiana, isolated from
the southern banks of the Amazon near its mouth
(macconnelli Chubb, 1919); central Mexico to
Guatemala and northern Nicaragua (mexicanus),
and the eastern Brazilian coast (bahiae Chubb,
1919) (see map 49 in Vaurie, 1980; and p. 499 in
Hilty, 2003).
Case report
On November 2, 2008 we had the opportunity to
collect a specimen (DESURCA-EB0142) at a cloud
forest remnant that straddles a steep ridge that
separates the Uribante River drainage to the San
Agatón ravine system, which in turn forms the
upper Doradas River at its junction with the San
Buenas ravine (figure 1).

Figure 2. Sclerurus mexicanus andinus in dorsal, lateral and ventral views.

DESURCA-EB0142. Scale in centimeters

15
This site is accessible through a dirt road northeast
from camp Siberia (1350 masl, 7°53’N – 71°43’W),
after passing a short distance (~1.7 Km in line)
towards the telecommunication towers. In turn,
camp Siberia is located between the localities of La
Fundación and Pregonero in Táchira state, at the
southwestern slopes of Cordillera de Mérida. The
site is recorded as very humid premontane forest
acccording to Holdrige’s life zone classification
(Ewel & Madriz, 1968).
The specimen, of undetermined sex (figure 2), was
caught using a 6 meter mistnet placed along forest
edge on an open track near a steep slope (1500 m).
This individual was found tangled in the lowest
section of the net at the break of dawn, slightly past
6 AM. It weighed 24.2 grams and had a total length
of 176.0 millimeters. Its left forearm measured 23.0
mm, while its left wing measured 112.0 mm (from
armpit to tip of third feather), while wing as
measured by Vaurie (1980) is 77.7 mm, which falls
within the species’ range (from wrist to tip of
feather). No ectoparasites were found. Presumably,
other individuals that escaped our unkeen attention
were seen very close to the net, frequently hiding
under vegetation debris clinging from the road-cut
cliff at the forest edge, in which case might have
been the site of a nest.
DISCUSSION
Sclerurus mexicanus was presumably seen in
Orinoquian slopes of venezuelan Andes above
Barinitas (Boesman, 1998) and Socopó, as well as
the western slopes near La Azulita (Beckers, 2005)
however since this and the similar and sympatric
gray-throated leaftosser (S. albigularis Sclater &
Salvin, 1869) may appear overlooked, no definite
record for this region can be addressed as neither
photograph or museum specimen exist. The
vouchered record given herein gives an important
range that fills a large gap and is strong evidence
that the species extends its distribution in the main
Venezuelan Andean system aside Perijá and gives
strong support for those records based on
observations. The site at Siberia is located at the
southwest end (SE slopes) of Cordillera de Mérida;
nevertheless, the species’ distribution towards the
northeastern extreme (i.e. towards Lara state, its
potential extreme limit) in similar habitats still
remains to be disclosed. Finally, the presumably
16
patchy referenced range is perhaps only an artifact
that results from lack of adecuate sampling, thus we
presume that it actually has a continuous
distribution. Nevertheless, habitat degradation may
in fact introduce small to medium scale range
disjunction forming a complex mosaic throughout
that may pose a threat to its integrity.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thanks are given to Gerencia de Cuencas
DESURCA (San Cristóbal) especially to Arfilio
Montilva for logistic support. To José Luís
Rodríguez, from Decanato de Investigación-UNET
under project 04-002-2008 for partial funds. To
Zenaida (and family, Siberia), Valeria Bellazzini,
Marian Chacón, Betsi Silva (UNET, San Cristóbal),
Alba Moncada and Taide Mora (UCAT, San
Cristóbal) for field assitance. Figure 1 was kindly
provided by the expertise of Lisbeth Urribarri
(UNET), and Figure 2 by the help of Elisa Araujo
(UNET). To William Tovar (ULA, Mérida) for
reading and suggesting the mansucript.
REFERENCES
BERNIS, F., E. DE JUANA; J. DEL HOYO; M.
FERNÁNDEZ-CRUZ; X. FERRER; R. SÁEZ-
ROYUELA & J. SARGATAL. 2003.- Nombres
en castellano de las aves del mundo recomen-
dados por la Sociedad Española de Ornitología
(Octava Parte: Orden Passeriformes, Familias
Eurylaimidae a Rhinocryptidae). Ardeola, 50:
103-110.
BECKERS, J. 2005.- Birding in and around Mérida
(Venezuela). Updated 1-sep-2005.
http://home.scarlet.be/~tsd81005/birding/merida
.htm
BOESMAN, P. 1998. Some new information on the
distribution of Venezuelan birds. Cotinga, 9: 27-
39.
EWEL, J.J. & A. MADRÍZ. 1968.- Zonas de vida
de Venezuela. Memoria explicativa sobre el
mapa ecológico. Editorial Sucre. Caracas. 265
pp+mapa.
FJELDSÅ, J.; M. IRESTEDT & P.G.P. ERICSON.
2005.- Molecular data reveal some mayor
 adaptational shift in the early evolution of the
most diverse avian family, the Furnariidae. J.
Ornithol., 146: 1-13

HILTY, S. L. 2003.- Birds of Venezuela. 2nd

Edition. Princeton University Press. Princeton,
New Jersey. xvi+878 pp.

IRESTEDT, M.; J. FJELDSÅ & G. P. ERICSON.

2006. Evolution of the ovenbird-woodcreeper
assemblage (Aves:Furnariidae) – major shifts in
nest architecture and adaptive radiation. J. Avian
Biol., 37: 260-272.

PHELPS JR. W. H. & R. MEYER DE

SCHAUENSEE, 1979.- Una guía de las aves de
Venezuela. Gráficas Armitano, Caracas. 484 pp.

SIBLEY CG; JE AHLQUIST. 1990.- Phylogeny

and Classification of Birds. Yale University
Press. New Haven. Conn.

VAURIE, C. 1980.- Taxonomy and geographical

distribution of the Furnariidae. Bull. Am. Mus.
Nat. Hist., 166: 1-357.

Adress
ORELLANA* Andrés; Andrés CHACÓN-ORTIZ*; Zahylis
ZAMBRANO○; Nelson SÁNCHEZ◘ & Simón RAMÍREZ
aorell@unet.edu.ve; aecortiz@unet.edu.ve, zahylzam@ula.ve,
pirrosanchez@hotmail.com
*Centro de Estudio de Vectores de Enfermedades,
Universidad Nacional Experimental del Táchira, Venezuela.
○
Laboratorio de Sistemas de Información Geográfica. Departamento de Ciencias
Sociales.
Universidad de los Andes, Táchira, Venezuela.
◘
Gerencia de Gestión Ambiental. Desarrollo Uribante-Caparo,
Táchira, República Bolivariana de Venezuela.

17