Bird Guide

Curve-billed Reedhaunter vs Streak-fronted Thornbird

Curve-billed Reedhaunter (Limnornis curvirostris)

Curve-billed Reedhaunter

Limnornis curvirostris

Small29 gWetland

The curve-billed reedhaunter is 15 to 17 cm (5.9 to 6.7 in) long and weighs 27 to 30 g (0.95 to 1.1 oz). It is a small furnariid whose plumage closely resembles that of some Old World reed warblers of genus Acrocephalus. It has a long and quite decurved bill. The sexes' plumages are alike. Adults have a whitish supercilium, an ill-defined dark brown band behind the eye, lighter brown ear coverts with some thin whitish streaks, and a whitish malar area. Voice: The curve-billed reedhaunter's song is a "fast series of harsh notes that ascend and then descend in pitch, fading towards end". Its call is "a hollow 'took' ".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Nicolas Olejnik · CC BY 4.0
Streak-fronted Thornbird (Phacellodomus striaticeps)

Streak-fronted Thornbird

Phacellodomus striaticeps

Small29 gShrubland

The streak-fronted thornbird is 16 to 17 cm (6.3 to 6.7 in) long and weighs about 23 to 29 g (0.81 to 1.0 oz). It is a rather small and slim thornbird. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have an indistinct gray-buff supercilium, blackish lores with some gray-buff, and a dark brown stripe behind the eye on an otherwise rufous-washed brownish face. Their forehead ("front") is a mix of blackish and reddish with brown streaks. Their crown is paler, browner, and unstreaked. Their upperparts are mostly rich dark brown with a slightly paler rump. Voice: The streak-fronted thornbird's song is "wip wip weep weep WEEEP weep weep weep wip wip, rising and falling in volume and pitch", and further described as "piercing, loud, and almost hysterical". Its calls are "an irregular series of squeaky 'jit' or 'tsip' notes also a loud trill".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Ron Knight from Seaford, East Sussex, United Kingdom · CC BY 2.0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Curve-billed Reedhaunter and Streak-fronted Thornbird.