Yellowish Pipit Anthus chii Scientific name definitions

The Yellowish Pipit is the most widespread of South America’s pipits. It is a bird of tropical savanna and grassy agricultural areas. In fresh plumage this pipit is indeed yellowish toned, although very quickly birds become worn and brownish above and whitish below and can appear the last thing from yellowish in the field, particularly in strong tropical sunlight. It's structure is peculiar, as it is rather long-legged and short-tailed; in fact it often gives the appearance of being on stilts, or that a much too big and long a leg was put on too small a bird’s body. Once learned, this structural look can be very useful in identifying the species. Also distinctive is its simple song, an electronic-sounding buzz that falls in scale that is preceded by a short tick note tic-ZZWEEEwwwwwwwwuuuuuuu. This song is given over and over again from the air and accompanied by a flight display where the bird falls in elevation as it gives the song.

10.5–14 cm; 13–18 g. Very small, rather slender pipit with yellowish underparts, relatively short tail. Adult nominate subspecies has narrow white eyering, very indistinct pale supercilium; dark brown above, buff-brown feather edging giving streaked appearance, speckling on sides of neck; remiges blackish brown, edged buff, pale tips of wing coverts (two pale wingbars); tail blackish-brown, T5 white apart from dark inner edge of inner web, T6 has white or pale brown outer web and white inner web; buffy to yellowish-white below, dark brown streaks across breast (forming band) and on upper flanks; iris dark brown; maxilla blackish brown to blackish, with pink mandible; legs pale (yellowish or grayish white to pale brown). Distinguished from almost all other pipits by small size and yellowish underparts; from Ochre-breasted Pipit (Anthus nattereri) by smaller size, less golden tone below. Sexes alike. Juvenile undescribed. Subspcies parvus is small, has feather edgings above more cinnamon buff, is more yellowish with less extensive streaking below.

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

May form a clade with Sprague's Pipit (Anthus spragueii), Short-billed Pipit (Anthus furcatus), Correndera Pipit (Anthus correndera), South Georgia Pipit (Anthus antarcticus), Hellmayr's Pipit (Anthus hellmayri) and Paramo Pipit (Anthus bogotensis), as well as Peruvian Pipit (Anthus peruvianus), with which it has hitherto been lumped. Form A. chii might be referable to present species, but best considered unidentifiable. Two subspecies recognized.

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Grassland and adjoining bare areas. Found in variety of open habitats, from tropical damp, often seasonally wet, short grassland to pastures and agricultural land, cerrado, often near rivers, lakes, rice fields and marshes; seems to prefer very short grass with some bare ground and agricultural areas. Lowlands, to ca. 1,300 m; in Venezuela, below 200 m north of R Orinoco.

Small insects, probably also seeds; no detailed information. Forages by walking and running in short grass; when disturbed, often flies up high and moves far away.

Ventriloquial song (lasting 0.8–2.4 seconds), usually in flight, a series of tsit or dee notes during ascent followed by long slurred dzeeeeeeeeeeeu or dsssssssseeeeee during slow gliding descent or while flying in circles, has been likened to sizzle sound of fireworks being set off. Call a short tsitsirrit, also wisst and a high, rising squeaky squeet.

Season January–June, also September, in Panama; recorded in May–June and September–October in Venezuela, and in July–November (mainly August–September) in São Paulo, southeastern Brazil, with still-dependent fledglings observed in late November and a nest with three eggs in mid December in Rio Grande do Sul, extreme southern Brazil. Monogamous; territorial, but often loosely colonial, with 15–20 birds in close proximity. In display-flight, male rises 10–20 m in air, rarely to 50 m, makes series of steep climbs and descents, then glides slowly in straight line down to ground. Nest described as oven-like (71–104 mm high, 93–127.5 mm wide and 104.5–157.3 mm long), sometimes with a tubular-like entrance, constructed of dry grasses and other soft vegetation, lined with finer grass leaves and grass stems, on ground in short grass; construction takes ca. 3 days. Clutch 2–4 eggs, laid on consecutive days. Eggs pale white with brown spots and blotches that can be more concentrated at larger end or homogeneously distributed over entire surface, size 17.1–19.7 mm × 13.3–14.2mm and mass 1.5–2 g (n = 16) (1 Freitas, M.S. and Francisco, M.R. (2012). Reproductive life history traits of the Yellowish Pipit (Anthus lutescens). Wilson J. Orn.. 124(1): 119–126. Close ), or 17.3 mm × 14 mm (parvus). Nestlings had yellowish skin and were covered with grey down on hatching. In a study in São Paulo, incubation lasts 13–14 days, starting on third day after first egg is laid; fledging period 13–17 days; estimated overall nesting success was 87% (1 Freitas, M.S. and Francisco, M.R. (2012). Reproductive life history traits of the Yellowish Pipit (Anthus lutescens). Wilson J. Orn.. 124(1): 119–126. Close ).

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Widespread, and locally fairly common to common in much of range. Generally local and uncommon in Amazonia, but range is unquestionably expanding there in response to advancing deforestation. Not considered likely to be at any risk.