Nombre en español: Saltador Chusquero

Nombre en ingles: Masked Saltator

Nombre científico: Saltator cinctus

Familia: Thraupidae

Foto: Hernán Arias

Canto: Bernabe Lopez-Lanus

El saltador enmascarado o saltador chusquero (Saltator cinctus)³ es una especie de avepaseriforme de la familia Thraupidae, que se encuentra en los Andes, en Colombia, Ecuador y Perú, entre los 2.000 y 3.000 m de altitud.

Descripción

Pico rojo, corona y cabeza negra; luce una franja blanca a manera de collar en la garganta; pecho, vientre y cola blancos; el plumaje de la espalda y las alas es negruzco a gris oscuro. Mide ente 21 y 23 cm de longitud. Pesa entre 43 y 53 g⁴

Hábitat

Vive en los bosques de montaña; se ha observado que prefiere alimentarse de los conos de Podocarpus oleifolius y además que permanece en masas densas de plantas Chusquea, en las cuales posiblemente busca alimento.¹

Masked saltator

The masked saltator (Saltator cinctus) is a species of saltator in the Thraupidae family.

It is found in southern Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. The species is found in two small disjunct ranges, as well as smaller localized areas in Ecuador and Peru.

Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests where it is threatened by habitat loss.

Currently treated as Near Threatened, the Masked Saltator is known from very few localities, in the Central Andes of Colombia, on the east slope in southern Ecuador, and in north central Peru. Throughout, it appears to be rare and local. The Masked Saltator is a bold and distinctive species, being mostly dark bluish gray above, with a black face and breast-band, largely white underparts, and a large black bill with varying amounts of red basally. The species occurs in the canopy of montane evergreen and elfin forest, and has been observed in dense stands of Chusquea bamboo in parts of Ecuador and Peru, but elsewhere there is evidence of a much stronger association with Podocarpus oleifolius, a very slow-growing and heavily logged tree. In Ecuador, it is speculated to undertake non-seasonal movements, perhaps in response to the availability of Podocarpus cones.