Animalia Life

Nystalus chacuru
TAXONOMY
Bucco chacuru Vieillot, 1816, Paraguay. Two subspecies recognized.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
French: Tamatia chacuru; German: WeiЯohr-faulvogel; Spanish: Buco Chacurъ.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
8.3–8.7 in (21–22 cm); 1.7–2.3 oz (48–64 g). Upperparts brown, finely spotted and barred paler. Large pale ear-covert spot bordered below by blackish patch extending toward nape; white on forehead extending to narrow pale coronal stripe. Underparts ochraceous. Large bill reddish.
DISTRIBUTION
N. c. uncirostris: eastern Peru, eastern Bolivia, and extreme western Brazil; N. c. chacuru: northeastern, eastern, and southern Brazil; eastern Paraguay; and northeastern Argentina.
HABITAT
Tropical dry forest, clearings and pastures, open woodland, savanna with scattered trees, even suburban areas where suitably wooded.
BEHAVIOR
Still-hunts from perches (including posts and wires) between ground level and upper canopy.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Eats mainly arthropods caught aerially or on the ground, but occasionally takes small vertebrates (lizards).
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Nests at the ends of cavities excavated in level ground or banks; 2–4 eggs are laid.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Not threatened. A common bird in much of southeastern and central Brazil. Although less common elsewhere, the species is nevertheless secure, especially because it is favored by deforestation.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
None known.

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