Bird Guide

Azara's Spinetail vs Pale-breasted Spinetail

Azara's Spinetail (Synallaxis azarae)

Azara's Spinetail

Synallaxis azarae

Small17 gForest

Azara's spinetail is 15 to 18 cm (5.9 to 7.1 in) long and weighs 12 to 18 g (0.42 to 0.63 oz). The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies S. a. azarae have a brownish gray face with a slightly paler supercilium. Their forehead and forecrown are dark grayish brown, their hindcrown and nape dark rufous, and their back, rump and uppertail coverts rich olive-brown. Their wings are mostly rufous-chestnut with dark brownish tips on their flight feathers. Their tail is dull chestnut-brown; the tail is graduated and the feathers have somewhat pointed tips. Voice: Azara's spinetail is quite vocal, repeating for minutes at a time a sharp "ket-kwééék", "pip-squeak", or "ka-kweeék". It also makes "scratchy, nasal 'prrt' notes", " 'kweek-kweek' notes", and a "low short 'chur' or 'trrt' ".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: JUAN ANTONIO ALONSO DE JUAN · CC BY 4.0
Photo: River Ahlquist · CC BY 4.0
Pale-breasted Spinetail (Synallaxis albescens)

Pale-breasted Spinetail

Synallaxis albescens

Tiny11 gGrassland

The pale-breasted spinetail is 13 to 16 cm (5.1 to 6.3 in) long and weighs 9 to 17 g (0.32 to 0.60 oz). It is slightly smaller and has a shorter bill than most other members of genus Synallaxis. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies S. a. albescens have a pale brownish gray face with an even paler line through the eye. Their forehead is olive grayish brown and their crown dark rufous, often with slight mottling. Their back, rump and uppertail coverts are olive-brown. Their wing coverts are rufous and their flight feathers tawny-brownish. Voice: The pale-breasted spinetail sings for long periods. Its song is variously described as "a sharp, scratchy zwee-bit, zweebit", a "very high scratchy wéetjirr wéetjirr", an "incessantly repeated wee-tee", an "unceasing, very high, shrill 'zutsweet zutsweet- -' ", a repeated "wee bidget..wee bidget...", and "a buzzy, nasal 'wéé-byew', 'wáke-up', 'wa-tér' ".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: forta cienpo · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Nicolas Olejnik · CC BY 4.0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Azara's Spinetail and Pale-breasted Spinetail.