Data Zone
Justification of Red List category
This has recently been discovered at a number of new locations. Nevertheless it has a small range (and presumably a small population) and remaining habitat is fragmented and continuing to decline in quality (Collar et al. 1992), so it consequently qualifies as Vulnerable.
Population justification
The population is estimated to number 2,500-9,999 individuals based on an assessment of known records, descriptions of abundance and range size. This is consistent with recorded population density estimates for congeners or close relatives with a similar body size, and the fact that only a proportion of the estimated Extent of Occurrence is likely to be occupied. This estimate is equivalent to 1,667-6,666 mature individuals, rounded here to 1,500-7,000 mature individuals.
Trend justification
A moderate and on-going population decline is suspected, owing to rates of habitat loss.
Thripophaga macroura occurs in the Atlantic forest region of south-east Brazil, from Bahia south of Salvador through east Minas Gerais to Espírito Santo and north Rio de Janeiro. Formerly known from just seven locations it has recently been found in a number of new localities: forests between Ituberá and Camamu; Usina Paineiras; Serra Bonita Private Reserve (RPPN) (B. Whitney and J. F. Pacheco in litt. 2003); Una Biological Reserve (R. Laps in litt. 2003) and two sites in the Jequitinhonha valley (Ribon et al. 2004). It may well occur in all the remaining lowland forest in southern Bahia. It is locally not uncommon, but occurs very patchily and is apparently absent from large areas of mature forest where vine-tangles are scarce (Remsen and Sharpe 2016).
It inhabits the interior of humid, primary and little-disturbed forest, but also occurs along forest edge and in degraded and secondary forest up to 1,000 m, where it appears to be closely associated with subcanopy vine-tangles. Although seemingly able to tolerate some degree of disturbance, it appears unable to survive in young secondary growth and other non-forest habitats. Birds forage in dense vine-tangles from c.2.5-7 m above ground, gleaning arthropods from vines, twigs, branches and sometimes leaves. Nesting has been reported in August-January (Mazar Barnett and Kirwan 2004). The relatively small territories (less than 1.5 ha) encompass a number of large, vine-covered trees.
Widespread and continuing habitat destruction has severely fragmented this species's range. Although it has been observed in degraded forest, it may be dependent on the presence of dense vine-tangles, which are likely to occur only in little-disturbed and mature secondary forests.
Conservation Actions Underway
It is considered Vulnerable at the national level in Brazil (Silveira and Straube 2008, MMA 2014) and protected under Brazilian law. Populations exist in several protected areas: Boa Nova, Serra das Lontras, Alto Cariri and Descobrimento National Parks (Remsen and Sharpe 2016), Sooretama Biological Reserve, Serra Bonita Private Reserve (B. Whitney and J. F. Pacheco in litt. 2003), Una Biological Reserve (R. Laps in litt. 2003) and Desengano State Park, although the numbers recorded are low. Its apparent absence from the Linhares Forest Reserve, adjacent to Sooretama, is surprising, and a further indication of its apparent patchy distribution.
18 cm. Streaked, rufous-brown, furnariid. Rufous-brown upperparts, with rufous-chestnut wings and contrasting bright cinnamon tail. Crown and mantle streaked buff. Indistinct, buffy-white supercilium. Brown underparts with narrow white streaks. Orange throat patch. Similar spp. May associate with Pale-browed Treehunter Cichlocolaptes leucophrus but this species is larger, with heavier bill, more distinct supercilium and broader streaking below. Voice Soft, high-pitched trill ending in a few emphasised notes and a trill. Also series of strident tchik notes.
Text account compilers
Benstead, P., Clay, R., Sharpe, C J, Symes, A., Williams, R.
Contributors
Lima, P., Laps, R., Olmos, F., Pacheco, J., Whitney, B.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Striated Softtail Thripophaga macroura. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/striated-softtail-thripophaga-macroura on 22/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 22/11/2024.