Dark-bellied Cinclodes

Remolinera Estriada

Cinclodes patagonicus

Length: 210mm. Sexes alike. Bill blackish; iris dark brown; upperparts of head, hind neck, back and uppertail coverts dark brown; rectrices dark brown with lateral feathers cinnamon brown to tip. Eyebrow white; throat and malar region white speckled dark brown; breast, flanks, belly and undertail coverts greyish brown with whitish streaks on breast. Wing coverts as back; remiges with basal bar reddish chestnut followed by a thin black bar, remainder dark brown; axillaries brownish buff. Legs dark brown. Habitat and behaviour: it inhabits streams, rivers, ponds, lake shores, and wet environments of the pre-Andean and Andean regions.

It can be seen in pairs or in small flocks, incessantly moving over rocks and logs that jutt out in rivers and lake shores. When it flies it is at low height. During the laying period it sings very frequently while beating its wings.

The nest is placed in cavities, crevices and tunnels where up to three white eggs are laid. It often approaches farmhouses where it announces its amiable presence with its song, usually perching on the ridgetop.

In Tierra del Fuego it is common on the seashore in association with the Grey-flanked Cinclodes (Cinclodes oustaleti), where it feeds in similar fashion on insects and invertebrates.

Range: it occurs from Neuquén to Tierra del Fuego along the Andean and pre-Andean regions; in Tierra del Fuego and Santa Cruz the race Cinclodes p. patagonicus; in Neuquén, west of Río Negro, west of Chubut and

Santa Cruz the race Cinclodes p. chilensis; this species dwells in Chile from Aconcagua to Chilean Tierra del Fuego.