Order
Passeriformes
Family
Thraupidae
Genus
Conirostrum
 
Neotropical Birds logo
Version 1.0

This is a historic version of this account.  Current version

SPECIES

Pearly-breasted Conebill Conirostrum margaritae

Oscar Johnson
Version: 1.0 — Published October 14, 2016

Behavior

Introduction

Pearly-breasted Conebills typically are found in pairs, moving through the canopy of Cecropia stands. It occasionally is found in small groups containing juveniles, as well as small mixed flocks of tanagers.

They typically pick at leaves and stems for small insects, occasionally hanging upsidedown to reach food items (Rosenberg 1985) in a very warbler-like fashion. Most food is gleaned off of leaves, although it is occasionally taken off the bark of Cecropia trees (Rosenberg 1985). These conebills occasionally also feed on Cecropia fruits.

Individuals sing from near the top of Cecropia trees, typically while perched on a thin horizontal branch, but move frequently between singing bouts.

Territoriality

Little information. Pairs of Pearly-breasted Conebill are highly territorial, but unresponsive to playback of Bicolored Conebill (Conirostrum bicolor), which often is found at the same localities. There are no data, however, on territory or home range size for Pearly-breasted Conebill. Bird densities in general are higher on Amazonian river islands in comparison to mainland species (Rosenberg 1990), so territories of Pearly-breasted Conebill could be expected to be small.

Sexual Behavior

Unknown. Pearly-vented Conebill presumably is at least socially monogamous.

Social and interspecific behavior

Pearly-breasted Conebill typically is found in pairs or small family groups, foraging in the canopy of Cecropia woodland. Pairs are highly territorial, but unresponsive to playback of Bicolored Conebill (Conirostrum bicolor), which often is found at the same localities. It is not known how these two species partition niche space. Pearly-breasted Conebill occasionally associates with small mixed flocks of tanagers.

Predation

No reported instances of predation on Pearly-breasted Conebill?

Recommended Citation

Johnson, O. (2016). Pearly-breasted Conebill (Conirostrum margaritae), version 1.0. In Neotropical Birds Online (T. S. Schulenberg, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/nb.pebcon1.01