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Dusky Chlorospingus | Chlorospingus semifuscus
Grijsborsttangare | Clorospingo oscuro | Clorospingo-escuro
The Dusky Chlorospingus is a plain, grey chlorospingus of the Pacific slope of the Andes in Colombia and Ecuador. It lacks the yellow breast band of most of its relatives; the pale iris stands out in the dark face. In the cloud forest of the western slope it is a regular member of mixed flocks.
Voice
Dry, sharp chip calls, often repeated within groups, and as song a fast, dry series of chip notes.
Recording: Juan Freile — CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 · xeno-canto
Identification
14 cm, with a conical, dark bill. The head is grey, without a white spot behind the eye. The upperparts are dark olive-green. The underparts are grey, with an olive-brown wash on the breast and flanks and no clear yellow band; the belly is paler grey. The iris is usually pale, greyish white to light brown. The sexes are alike. Juveniles are duller and browner.
Confusion species
Common Chlorospingus Chlorospingus flavopectus has a yellow breast band and usually a white spot behind the eye. Ashy-throated Chlorospingus Chlorospingus canigularis has a pale grey throat and an olive-yellow breast band. Yellow-throated Chlorospingus Chlorospingus flavigularis has a bright yellow throat. Black-eared Hemispingus Sphenopsis melanotis has a black ear patch and ochre underparts.
Habitat
Humid cloud forest, montane forest and forest edges on the Pacific slope, also tall secondary forest, roughly between 1200 and 2500 m. It searches the lower and middle levels for insects and small fruits, mostly in small groups within mixed flocks. The nest is a cup of moss and fibres.
Where the bird is most at home, classified by the vegetation units of the Andes and the west coast.
Range and movements
In Colombia on the Pacific slope of the Western Andes, from Antioquia south to Nariño. In Ecuador on the western slope, mainly in the north and centre. Absent from Peru, Bolivia and the Galápagos. Does not occur outside the guide area.
- Resident
- dark = core range, pale = thinly spread
How and when to look
Search the cloud forests above Mindo and Tandayapa in Ecuador or along mountain roads on the western slope in Colombia; small groups move with mixed flocks through the undergrowth and middle levels.
Conservation status
Not evaluated in the taxonomy followed here. The species is common in suitable forest, but the cloud forest of the western slope is locally cleared for cattle ranching.
Scientific name
Chlorospingus semifuscus | Sclater & Salvin, 1873
Sclater & Salvin described the species in 1873 and placed it straight away in the genus where it still stands. The genus Chlorospingus was introduced in 1851 by Cabanis. The genus name combines Greek khlōros, 'green', with spingos, a small bird, perhaps the chaffinch. The species name comes from Latin semi, 'half', and fuscus, 'dusky', referring to the partly dark plumage. The specimen the first description was based on came from Near Quito, Ecuador.