Black-fronted Tyrannulet Phylloscartes nigrifrons Scientific name definitions

Endemic to the tepui region of southernmost Venezuela and adjacent Guyana, where the species inhabits humid montane forest and tall second growth at 800–1800 m, Black-fronted Tyrannulets is a rather distinctively plumaged Phylloscartes, with an obviously gray crown, black forehead and lores, grizzled black and white face, and largely very pale underparts, lacking any trace of yellow. Most Phylloscartes tyrannulets are thought to feed solely on invertebrates, but Black-fronted Tyrannulet is suspected to also take small fruits. Like its congeners, this tyrannulet usually is found in pairs and often with mixed-species flocks; other aspects of its behavior and comportment are also typical of the genus. The origins of many pantepui endemics are often difficult to divine, without reference to molecular methods, but Black-fronted Tyrannulet has been suggested to form a superspecies with Rufous-lored Tyrannulet (Phylloscartes flaviventris) and Cinnamon-faced Tyrannulet (Phylloscartes parkeri).