Moustached Antwren Myrmotherula ignota Scientific name definitions

The Moustached Antwren ranges from eastern Panama to northwest Ecuador, as well as in upper Amazonia from eastern Colombia to northeast Peru, and east almost as far as central Amazonian Brazil. The Amazonian populations were formerly considered to represent a separate species, the Short-billed Antwren, but they were recently shown to be identical vocally to the trans-Andean birds. Moustached Antwren and Pygmy Antwren (Myrmotherula brachyura) are frequently found in the same canopy and subcanopy mixed-species flocks, wherein they will prove difficult to distinguish, given that both species are less likely to be vocalizing under such conditions. Male Moustached Antwrens possess broader malar and postocular streaks, and appears more heavily black over the upperparts, and these same characters are also evident and useful for separating females of the two species.

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.

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.

Loudsong an accelerating series of short notes increasing and then decreasing in pitch and intensity, similar in pattern to that of M. brachyura but pace slower and notes, although still uncountable, are more musical, less abrupt. Call a short, uneven, downslurred whistle; obscura also an abrupt note (not yet recorded for nominate race).