White-throated Cacholote

Cacholote Pardo

Pseudoseisura gutturalis

Length: 250mm. Sexes alike. Bill brownish grey with pale grey spot on base of mandible and on lower half of maxilla; iris dark brown; upperparts of head and auriculars dark slightly rusty; inconspicuous crest; hind neck and above in general brown, slightly grey. Tail rusty brown with feathers ending in small points. Throat white and edged with black; foreneck, breast and underparts in general greyish brown; wing coverts cinnamon brown; remiges brown. Legs grey. Average weight: 77g.

Habitat and behaviour: it inhabits shrubby steppe. It forages on the ground, and on tree trunks and branches, chiefly feeding on insects and their larvae. It is always found in pairs or family groups. Garrulous by nature, it is very often heard giving out its potent voice in duet. It flies for not very long stretches, almost always it perches on the ground and from there it climbs up tree branches. Like the Brown Cacholote (Pseudoseisura lophotes) this species builds a very large nest and lays up to four white eggs. Almost always found at the same place due to its strong territorial behaviour.

Range: in Patagonia the race Pseudoseisura g. gutturalis is found in the steppe region east of Neuquén and in all arid steppe regions of Río Negro, Chubut and northeast of Santa Cruz.

Illustrated Handbook of the Birds of Patagonia

Kindness: Kovacs Family