Spix's spinetail, previously known as the chicli spinetail, is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
Region
Southern and eastern South America
Typical Environment
Occurs from eastern and southern Brazil into Paraguay, Uruguay, and northeastern Argentina. It favors edges of woodlands, secondary growth, riparian thickets, and scrubby pastures with dense underbrush. It also uses gallery forest edges and brushy clearings near human-modified landscapes. Typically keeps close to the ground or mid-understory and rarely ventures into open areas far from cover.
Altitude Range
0–1500 m
Climate Zone
Subtropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
Named after the German naturalist Johann Baptist von Spix, this small ovenbird often cocks and flicks its stiff, spiny-tipped tail while moving through dense cover. It builds a bulky, globular stick nest with a side entrance, usually placed low in shrubs. Despite being conspicuous by voice, it is a skulker and can be hard to see well.
Temperament
skulking and territorial
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Usually found singly or in pairs that maintain year-round territories. Pairs cooperate to build a bulky stick nest with a side entrance in dense shrubs. Clutch size is small and both sexes participate in nesting duties.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Song is a dry, accelerating series of notes or trills that can sound mechanical. Calls include sharp chips and rattling chatters delivered from concealed perches within dense vegetation.
Plumage
Warm brown upperparts with rufous wings and a rufous, spiny-tipped tail; underparts buffy to pale with a whitish throat. Face shows a subtle pale supercilium and slightly grayer cheeks. Feathers appear soft but tail rectrices are stiff and pointed.
Diet
Primarily takes small arthropods such as insects and spiders, gleaned from leaves, twigs, and vine tangles. Forages methodically, probing into clusters of dead leaves and debris. Occasionally sallies short distances to snatch prey but mostly gleans within dense cover.
Preferred Environment
Feeds in dense understory of scrub, edge thickets, and second-growth tangles, often near forest margins and riparian vegetation. Stays low to mid-levels, rarely venturing into open ground.
