Mottle-backed Elaenia Elaenia gigas Scientific name definitions

The Mottle-backed Elaenia is a crested flycatcher of montane northwestern South America. Distributed from Colombia to western Bolivia, it inhabits forest clearings and scrub habitat between 250 and 1000 meters in elevation along the eastern base of the Andes. Large for an elaenia, it is olive above with a tall, split crest and a small white crown patch, darker feather centers on the back imparting a mottled appearance, blackish wings with thin white wing bars and flight feather edging, olive chest and a yellow belly. Mottle-backed Elaenia is a very active flycatcher, and typically gives a burry, Progne martin-like call.

18 cm. Large elaenia with prominent bifurcated crest and large white coronal patch , often looks “horned”. Plumage is otherwise olive-brown above, faint whitish eyering; paler green-olive edgings on back (can present mottled or streaked effect); wings dusky, two whitish wingbars , whitish edgings of remiges, tail dusky; throat grey, becoming somewhat streaked or clouded with olive on breast and flanks, belly and undertail-coverts pale yellow; iris dark brown; bill black, dull pinkish base of lower mandible; legs black. Sexes alike, female slightly smaller. Juvenile undescribed.

Insects and small fruits. Perches upright, often on exposed branches, distinctive crest almost always raised; usually appears conspicuous, active and excited, as E. flavogaster. Forages at levels of 3–20 m; makes short sallies into air, also hover-gleans.

Frequent calls a martin-like “direet” and a shrill “pert-chéér”; dawn song “wurdit” or “purdip”, given repeatedly from top of low tree or bush.

Birds with enlarged gonads in Oct–Nov. A nest in Ecuador had two nestlings in Oct; nest was 13 m above ground in the canopy of a 15-m tall Piptocoma discolor tree (Asteraceae), suspended between the branches of a single vertical fork; the cup was entirely of pale rootlets interwoven and wrapped circularly, and there was no differentiable lining and no external decoration (1 Stawarczyk, T., Greeney, H. and Simbaña, J. (2009). First description of the nest of Mottle- backed Elaenia Elaenia gigas. Cotinga. 31: 134–135. Close ). No other information.

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Rare to locally fairly common. Occurs in Tinigua National Park, in Colombia, Podocarpus National Park and Kapawi and Yuturi Lodges, all in Ecuador, and Manu National Park and Biosphere Reserve, in Peru. Possibly extending its range as a result of deforestation.