Bird Guide

Double-banded Pygmy Tyrant vs Scale-crested Pygmy Tyrant

Double-banded Pygmy Tyrant (Lophotriccus vitiosus)

Double-banded Pygmy Tyrant

Lophotriccus vitiosus

Tiny7 gForest

The double-banded pygmy tyrant is about 10 cm (3.9 in) long and weighs 6 to 8.5 g (0.21 to 0.30 oz). It has long crown feathers that form a crest and that it occasionally erects and fans; the feathers extend past the back of the head when folded. Females have a smaller crest than males but the sexes otherwise have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies L. v. vitiosus have a black crest with gray edges on the feathers. They have whitish lores on an otherwise olive face. Their back, rump, and uppertail coverts are olive. Voice: The double-banded pygmy tyrant's song has some regional variation. In Ecuador it is described as "a distinctive short harsh trill that descends in pitch, 'turrrrrrew' ". In Peru, subspecies L. v. vitiosus sings a similarly described "descending, harsh, ringing djzeeer" while L. v. congener sings a "similar, but considerably lower-pitched beerrrrrrp".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Double-banded Pygmy Tyrant
Recorded by JUAN ANTONIO ALONSO DE JUAN · Call · Vereda La Máquina, Pacho, Cundinamarca, Colombia · CC BY 4.0
Photo: Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová · CC BY 4.0
Scale-crested Pygmy Tyrant (Lophotriccus pileatus)

Scale-crested Pygmy Tyrant

Lophotriccus pileatus

Tiny7 gForest

The scale-crested pygmy tyrant is 8 to 10 cm (3.1 to 3.9 in) long and weighs about 7 to 8 g (0.25 to 0.28 oz). It has long crown feathers that form the eponymous crest and that it sometimes erects and fans. Females have a smaller crest than males but the sexes otherwise have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies L. p. pileatus have a black crest with rufous edges on the feathers. They have whitish lores on an otherwise brownish face. Their back, rump, and uppertail coverts are olive. Voice: The scale-crested pygmy tyrant's main vocalization is a very loud trill that differs somewhat geographically. It has been written as "tr-tr-tr-tr-tr-tr-tr-tr" and "trrrrrreét", "dzzeeer-dzeer-dzeer", and "cre'e'e'e'e, k'e'e'e'e". It also makes "a series of sharp "preek" notes, sometimes widely spaced".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Scale-crested Pygmy Tyrant
Recorded by JUAN ANTONIO ALONSO DE JUAN · Call · Vereda La Máquina, Pacho, Cundinamarca, Colombia · CC BY 4.0
Photo: Ben Costamagna · CC BY 4.0

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Double-banded Pygmy Tyrant and Scale-crested Pygmy Tyrant.