The Magellanic tapaculo is a small passerine bird in the tapaculo family Rhinocryptidae that is found in southern South America.
Region
Patagonia and southern Andes
Typical Environment
Occurs in temperate forests and shrublands of southern Chile and adjacent Argentina, from coastal forests to Andean foothills. It favors dense, moist understory with abundant mosses, leaf litter, and bamboo (often Chusquea). Common in Nothofagus beech woods, forest edges, and riparian thickets. It also uses wind-sheltered ravines and scrubby slopes, especially where ground cover is continuous. The species keeps near the ground, weaving through tangles and using root masses and logs for cover.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 2000 m
Climate Zone
Temperate
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The Magellanic tapaculo is a secretive ground-dwelling songbird of the dense understory, more often heard than seen. It frequents southern beech (Nothofagus) forests and bamboo tangles, where it runs and hops mouse-like with its tail often cocked. Despite its tiny size and weak flight, its ringing trills carry far through Patagonian forests. Pairs defend territories year-round and nest in well-concealed cavities or burrows lined with moss and fibers.
Watercolour made by Georg Forster on the island of Tierra del Fuego on James Cook's second voyage to the Pacific Ocean. This painting is the holotype for the species.
Temperament
solitary and territorial
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Typically encountered as single birds or pairs that maintain small territories year-round. Nests are well hidden, often in earthen banks, root tangles, or cavities, forming a moss-lined ball with a side entrance. Both adults are attentive to the nest, and fledglings remain close to dense cover.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Song is a loud, ringing series of rapid, metallic trills that may accelerate or maintain a steady tempo. Calls include sharp chips and ticking notes, delivered from concealed perches within dense vegetation.
Plumage
Compact, round-bodied tapaculo with dark slate-gray underparts and brownish to dusky upperparts, often with fine barring on the flanks and rump. Feathers appear soft and plain, aiding camouflage in shadowy understory.
Diet
Feeds primarily on small arthropods such as insects, spiders, and their larvae. It gleans from leaf litter, probes among moss and roots, and pecks along logs and stones. Prey is captured mostly on or near the ground with quick, deliberate movements.
Preferred Environment
Forages in dense understory, bamboo thickets, and mossy ground layers of temperate forest. Frequently uses shaded ravines, stream margins, and areas with abundant fallen wood that provide cover and foraging substrate.
