The tawny-winged woodcreeper is a passerine bird in subfamily Dendrocolaptinae of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama.
Region
Central America
Typical Environment
Occurs from southern Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and into Panama. Prefers humid lowland and foothill evergreen or semi-evergreen forests, including tall secondary growth and forest edges. Most frequently found in the shaded forest interior, where it moves along trunks, large limbs, and dense vines. Common around army ant swarms along forest floors and in ravines.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1500 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A quiet, forest-dependent woodcreeper, it often follows army ant swarms to snatch insects flushed from the leaf litter. It typically forages by hitching up trunks and large branches, probing bark crevices and tangles. Its warm tawny wings are a key field mark that contrasts with the otherwise plain brown body.
Temperament
shy and unobtrusive
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats; mostly hops and creeps along trunks
Social Behavior
Usually solitary or in pairs, occasionally joins mixed-species flocks. Frequently attends army ant swarms to feed on flushed prey. Nests in natural cavities or old woodpecker holes; both adults participate in care of the young.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Voice is a series of clear, whistled notes that may accelerate or descend slightly. Calls include thin, high-pitched tseet or peet notes given from shaded perches within the forest.
