Brown-winged Schiffornis
Schiffornis turdina

Araguacema, Tocantins, January 2009

This geographically variable species is the largest of the genus Schiffornis (it was formerly placed in the monotypic genus Herteropelma by some authorities). All subspecies are essentially brown or olive-brown, being paler on the underparts, with prominent large dark eyes. Geographical variation is deeply complex, but never very striking and involves 13 currently recognised species. Following the suggestion of Ridgely and Tudor (1994) that multiple species might be involved in this complex, a more recent attempt to reconstruct the phylogeography of S. turdina, coupled with a partial vocal analysis of the group, recommended that five parapatric and vocally distinct forms should be recognised as species under the Biological Species Concept (Nyári 2007). These are as follows: S. veraepacis (Brown Schiffornis) from Mexico to north-west Peru (including the following taxa, dumicola, acrolophites and rosenbergi), S. stenorhyncha (Slender-billed Schiffornis) in the lowlands of eastern Panama to northern Colombia and north-west Venezuela (thus including panamensis, which was not directly sampled by the study), S. olivacea (Olivaceous Schiffornis) from south-east Venezuela and the Guianas south across northern Amazonia (including wallacii and part of the range formerly attributed to amazona), S. aenea (Foothill Schiffornis) in the east-slope foothills of the Andes in Ecuador and northern Peru (monotypic), S. amazona (Amazonian Schiffornis) over western Amazonia (including steinbachi), and S. turdina (Thrush-like Schiffornis) in south-east Amazonia and the Atlantic Forest of eastern Brazil (including part of the range formerly attributed to amazona, and intermedia).