Rondonia Bushbird Clytoctantes atrogularis Scientific name definitions

The Rondonia Bushbird is one of the most enigmatic and poorly known of all Amazonian birds. Discovered in 1986 along the Rio Machado (Ji-Paraná) in Rondonia and remaining unrecorded for almost two decades, it subsequently has been detected at few other sites in the upper and central portion of the Madeira-Tapajós interfluvium, in central Amazonian Brazil. It is a distinctive, large antbird with a bizarre recurved, chisel-shaped bill. The male is dark gray with a subtle black bib, while the female is rufous with a black throat. It resembles both the Recurve-billed Bushbird (Clytoctantes alixii) of northern Colombia and, to a lesser extent, the Black Bushbird (Neoctantes niger) of western and central Amazonia, but both sexes can be distinguished from either species by plumage details. It is likely easiest to detect aurally, particularly given its apparent predilection for tangled understory and vines in lowland terra firme forest. It has been observed using its peculiar bill to pound and dig at vines, open up bamboo culms, and probe the base of palm leaves in the understory. This species is very poorly known and appears to be rare within its range, and in spite of seemingly being resistant to some degree of forest disturbance, the high rates of deforestation may exacerbate population declines in significant parts of its distribution.