Appearance

Earthcreepers (Ochetorhynchus, Geocerthia, Upucerthia, and Tarphonomus) are large terrestrial ovenbirds (Furnariidae), with long bills and tails. The Striated Earthcreeper is a dark-colored, relatively straight billed earthcreeper. This species also has heavily streaked underparts and the wings are extensively rufous.

The Striated Earthcreeper overlaps geographically with Plain-breasted Earthcreeper (Upucerthia jelskii), although Plain-breasted typically occurs in more open habitats, and often at higher elevations. Striated Earthcreeper easily is distinguished from Plain-breasted by the heavily streaked underparts and the rufous wings, and by the straighter bill.  distinguish this from Plain-breasted Earthcreeper. These features also serve to distinguish Striated from White-throated Earthcreeper (Upucerthia albigula) in the restricted area where both species occur.

Adult: A dark colored earthcreeper, with a long, slightly curved bill curved. Sexes similar. Crown dusky brown, forecrown narrowly streaked with whitish buff. Supercilium whitish buff. Back dark brown; sides of the neck dark brown, narrowly streaked with whitish buff. Rump dark rufous brown. Tail dull rufous, central rectrices sometimes rufous brown. Wing coverts and remiges rufous or dull rufous. Throat dirty white, more or less lightly scaled with dusky. Breast and belly dull gray brown or olive brown, streaked with whitish buff. (Description based on specimens in the Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science.)

Juvenile: "Scaled on breast and faintly barred on upper belly, lower underparts almost unstreaked" (Fjeldså and Krabbe 1990).

Not described.

Iris: brown, dark brown, gray-brown

Bill: black, horn

Tarsi and toes: tarsi gray or brown; toes sometimes described as darker than the tarsi

Data from specimens in the Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science.

Total length: 18 cm (Fjeldså and Krabbe 1990), 19-20 cm (Remsen 2003), 19.5-20.5 cm (Schulenberg et al. 2007), 20.5 cm (Ridgely and Tudor 1994, 2009)

Linear measurements (from Hellmayr 1925):

wing length, males (n = 4): 86-88 mm

wing length, females (n = 3): 83-87 mm

tail length (n = ?; sexes combined?): 84-90 mm

bill length (n = ?; sexes combined?): 24-27 mm

Mass: male, mean 45.3 g (range 41-52 g, n = 5); female, mean 48 g (46, 50 g; n = 2); sexes combined, mean 46.1 g (range 41-52 g; n = 7) (data from specimens in the Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science)