Justification of Red List category
This species is likely to be undergoing a moderately rapid population decline as a result of the loss, degradation and fragmentation of its forest habitats. It is therefore listed as Near Threatened.
Population justification
The global population size has not been quantified, but this species is described as 'uncommon' (Stotz et al. 1996).
Trend justification
A slow population decline is suspected to be continuing as the population is now fragmented, and continues to be affected by habitat loss and degradation through human developments.
Anabacerthia amaurotis occurs in the Atlantic forests of south-east Brazil (south Espírito Santo locally to north Rio Grande do Sul), south-east Paraguay (Alto Paraná, Caazapá, Itapúa) and north-east Argentina (Misiones) (Ridgely and Tudor 1994, Lowen et al. 1996).
It is rare to locally fairly common in the lower growth of montane and lowland evergreen forest at 100-1,600 m (Ridgely and Tudor 1994), but is predominantly a montane species in Brazil (Tobias et al. 1993).
Agricultural conversion and deforestation for mining and plantation production historically threatened its lowland forests. Current key threats are urbanisation, industrialisation, agricultural expansion, colonisation and associated road-building (Dinerstein et al. 1995, Fearnside 1996), but it is now largely confined to a number of protected areas.
Conservation Actions Underway
This species occurs in Itatiaia National Park and Serra dos Órgãos National Park, Brazil.
15.5 cm. A small brown arboreal foliage-gleaner. Above rufous brown, with darker crown and ear-coverts, bright rufous tail and a creamy white supercilium. Throat white; rest of underparts olive brown with diffuse pale streaking on upper breast and sides of neck. Similar spp. Buff-browed Foliage-gleaner Syndactyla rufosuperciliata is more uniform olive brown above, supercilium is narrower and buff not creamy and its ear coverts are less contrasting. Pale-browed Treehunter Cichlocolaptes leucophrus is larger, streaked on the crown and mantle and more sharply streaked below. Sharp-billed Treehunter is smaller, streaked on the mantle and has a buffy supercilium and throat. Hints: Inconspicuous; forages low to the ground, often with understorey flocks, frequently in dead leaves. Voice: A stuttering chatter followed by 3-4 loud shrieks.
Text account compilers
Butchart, S., Gilroy, J., Sharpe, C J
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: White-browed Foliage-gleaner Anabacerthia amaurotis. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/white-browed-foliage-gleaner-anabacerthia-amaurotis on 23/12/2024.
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 23/12/2024.