Bird Guide

Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper vs Tawny-winged Woodcreeper

Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper (Lochmias nematura)

Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper

Lochmias nematura

Small22 gRiverine

The sharp-tailed streamcreeper is 13 to 14 cm (5.1 to 5.5 in) long and weighs 20 to 38 g (0.71 to 1.3 oz). It is a rather dark furnariid with a long and slightly decurved bill. The sexes' plumages are alike. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a narrow ragged white supercilium, blackish lores, dull brownish ear coverts with rufescent shafts, and a whitish malar area. Their crown is dark brown with faint spots on the forehead. Their back is rich reddish brown that blends to a blackish rump and uppertail coverts. Voice: The sharp-tailed streamcreeper's song appears to vary little among its disjunct populations. The song is "a series of dry notes that gradually accelerate and ascend, then stay on same pitch, then descend abruptly". Its calls have been written as "sea-sick", "seesee-sik", "tsiterit", and "tsitit". Its alarm call is "chet-chet-chet".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper
Recorded by Niels Krabbe · Call · Napo: Napo Galeras, Ecuador · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Ben Tavener · CC BY 2.0
Tawny-winged Woodcreeper (Dendrocincla anabatina)

Tawny-winged Woodcreeper

Dendrocincla anabatina

Small34 gForest

The tawny-winged woodcreeper is 17 to 19 cm (6.7 to 7.5 in) long. Males of the nominate subspecies weigh 34 to 42 g (1.2 to 1.5 oz) and females 29 to 39 g (1.0 to 1.4 oz). The species is a medium-sized member of its genus, with a straight bill, a short tail, and a ruffled nape. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a brown head with buffy supercilium and bare gray skin around the eye. Their crown, nape, and back are dark olive-brown and their uppertail coverts and tail are cinnamon-rufous to rufous-chestnut. Voice: The tawny-winged woodcreeper makes a long rattle song described as "whee-whee-whee-whee..." that may last more than a minute. Its calls include "a plaintive 'squirp', 'deyeew', 'cheeuw', and 'tchee-u'." Another rendition of a call is "an emphatic TEAURRR!".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: datadan · 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: Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper and Tawny-winged Woodcreeper.