Many-colored Rush Tyrant Tachuris rubrigastra Scientific name definitions

The Many-colored Rush Tyrant is truly a well-named bird. Among a family of frequently dull-plumaged and similar birds, it is positively gaudily attired, and it is wholly dependent on reedy marshes and lake edges for breeding. It forages alone, in pairs, or small family parties, searching acrobatically for insects that are perch-gleaned. The underparts and supercilium are entirely yellow, except for the white throat, the mantle is olive-green, the tail and wings are black with a bold white pattern on the coverts and tertials; there is a black bar on the breast sides, and a red patch on the nape, and another on the undertail coverts. Many-colored Rush Tyrant is resident over much of Chile and Argentina, with smaller extensions of its range north to southeast Brazil in the east, and western Peru in the west, and it occurs from sea level to altitudes above 4000 m.

11–11·5 cm; 6·5–8 g. Vibrantly coloured, the most colourful of all tyrannids. Male nominate race has crown black, prominent golden supercilium, semi-concealed red coronal patch and slight crest; lores and auriculars glossy blue to black, giving masked appearance; nape ochraceous, edging into bright moss-green back; wings black, prominent white bar formed by white edging of wing-coverts and tertials; tail black, outer rectrices white; upper throat white; breast and belly bright yellow, black bars near bend of wing (nearly meeting at centre), crissum bright red to orange-red, sometimes a faded rose-pink; iris pale, bluish; bill black; tarsi notably long, black. Female has same general pattern as male, slightly duller colours, coronal patch smaller. Immature lacks blue on facial mask, green upperparts may be scaled yellow, breast and belly paler yellow, breastbars absent. Race <em>libertatis</em> has whiter throat and belly and greener, less prominent supercilium than nominate; <em>alticola</em> has darker, more blackish-green back, paler yellow supercilium, is slightly larger; loaensis is smaller, has more extensive white on throat, stronger yellowish-ochre on neck and breast, pale greyish-white belly, supercilium tinged green, tail edged brighter white.

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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.

Extensive reedbeds, marshes , and grassy lake edges, very rarely leaving patches of reeds for adjacent growth; sea-level to 4200 m.

Migratory patterns poorly understood; populations in S parts of range move N during austral winter; one individual recorded 170 km offshore from Rio Grande do Sul, in Brazil, in Mar 1960.

Insects . Forages alone or in family groups in dense rushes, usually well concealed. Mainly perch-gleans items from reed edges or floating vegetation, often clinging or hanging upside-down from reed stems, sometimes sallying out for aerial prey or flight-gleaning insects from water surface; sometimes runs or hops on ground, mud or floating vegetation in search of prey.

Bizarre, rapid series of insect-like “tic” notes, and musical “piwup bzzzzt” or “piwup piwuprrrrp” with gurgled quality and buzzing element.

Eggs in Oct, nestlings in Sept and fledglings in Feb in Peru; in breeding condition in Sept and Oct and fledgling in Feb in SE Brazil. Very distinctive, deep, tight, cone-shaped cup-nest attached by its side to single reed, usually over water; uses wet pieces of reed leaf which, after drying, achieve consistency of cardboard. Clutch 3 eggs, rarely 4; no information on incubation and fledging periods.

Not globally threatened. Locally common; often found in scattered, loose colonies, with intervening suitable habitat apparently unoccupied. In NW of range, abundant at L Junín (Peru), and common at L Titicaca and L Poopó (Bolivia). Occurs in many protected areas, e.g. Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve, in Argentina.