Andean Tit-Spinetail
Leptasthenura andicola
The Andean tit-spinetail is 15 to 17 cm (5.9 to 6.7 in) long and weighs about 15 to 16 g (0.53 to 0.56 oz). It is a small-bodied, long-tailed furnariid with a short bill. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies L. a. andicola have a wide white supercilium on an otherwise dark streaky gray-brown face. Their crown is rich rufous chestnut with black streaks. Their upperparts are dark gray-brown with prominent white or whitish streaks. Their wings are dark brownish with faint rufescent edges on the coverts and flight feathers. Voice: What is thought to be the Andean tit-spinetail's song has been described as "a descending series of notes starting and ending with a trill or a tinkling trill that descends a little" and as "a hesitating series of high-pitched short trills". Its calls include "a weak, tinkling téz-dit or téz-dit-dit" and "fine zik, ti, or tic notes". It also makes "a high, mammallike squeal".
ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Plain-mantled Tit-Spinetail
Leptasthenura aegithaloides
The plain-mantled tit-spinetail is 15 to 17 cm (5.9 to 6.7 in) long and weighs 7.5 to 11 g (0.26 to 0.39 oz). It is a small, slender, long-tailed furnariid with a short bill. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies L. a. aegithaloides have a white supercilium on an otherwise dark brownish, whitish streaked, face. Their crown is dark brown with wide golden-tawny streaks, their hindneck dark brown with grayish-white streaks, and their back, rump, and uppertail coverts dull brownish. Voice: The subspecies of the plain-mantled tit-spinetail have quite different voices. The nominate subspecies' song is "a high-pitched descending, broken trill lasting 2–5 seconds, with accentuated sharper notes, e.g. 'chikiti-chikiti-chikiti- chikiti-ti-ti-ti-pweew-ti-ti-ti-pweew-ti-ti-ti…' ". Its calls include a "shorter, lower-pitched nasal trill, 'prrr' " and "a double 'tzk-tzk' or 'pit-tzk-tzk' ".
ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Where you might meet both
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Play today's Daily BirdPhotos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Andean Tit-Spinetail and Plain-mantled Tit-Spinetail.