The white-chinned woodcreeper is a species of bird in subfamily Dendrocolaptinae of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela.
Region
Amazon Basin and Guiana Shield
Typical Environment
Occurs widely across lowland tropical rainforest from Venezuela, the Guianas, and Colombia south through Amazonian Ecuador, Peru, and Brazil to northern Bolivia. It favors mature terra firme forest but also uses várzea and tall secondary growth, especially in areas with large trees. Typically keeps to the forest interior from the understory to midstory, moving along trunks and thick branches. Frequently associates with army-ant swarms and occasionally joins mixed-species flocks.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1500 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A largely ant-following woodcreeper, it often attends army-ant swarms to snatch flushed insects and other arthropods. Its small white chin patch is the key field mark, standing out against otherwise plain brown plumage. It forages by hitching up trunks and larger branches, probing bark crevices and dead leaf clusters. Despite being widespread, it can be inconspicuous inside dense, mature rainforest.
Temperament
solitary and secretive
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats between trunks; weak, slightly undulating
Social Behavior
Usually forages alone or in pairs inside dense forest, often following army-ant swarms to capture fleeing prey. Breeding is in tree cavities or natural holes; both sexes are thought to share incubation and chick-rearing duties. Territorial calls are given from midstory perches, but the bird is otherwise quiet and unobtrusive.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A simple series of clear, mellow whistles, often descending slightly and repeated at intervals. Calls include soft chips and harsh notes given around ant swarms or when alarmed.
