Stub-tailed Spadebill

En bref

  • Scientific Name: Platyrinchus cancrominus
  • Spanish Name: Picoancho colicorto
  • Famille : Tyrannidae
  • Known Nicknames: Stub-tailed Spadebill, Stub-tailed Flatbill
  • Average Length: 9–10 cm / 3.5–4 in
  • Average Weight: 8–11 g / 0.28–0.39 oz
  • Envergure : N/A
  • Key Feature: Short, broad, spade-shaped bill and a very short, stubby tail
  • Régime alimentaire principal : Principalement insectivore
  • Range: Southern Mexico to western Panama
  • Habitat: Humid lowland and foothill forests, forest edges, and secondary growth
  • Structure sociale : Solitaires ou en couples
  • Nesting/Breeding: Pyriform (pear-shaped) nest with a side entrance, suspended from a branch or vine
  • Statut de conservation : Préoccupation mineure (LC)
  • Évolution démographique : Stable

The Stub-tailed Spadebill (*Platyrinchus cancrominus*) is a diminutive, cryptically colored flycatcher found in the humid lowland forests of Central and South America, from southern Mexico to northwestern Ecuador. Its most distinctive feature is its unusually short, square-tipped tail, which gives the species its common name, and a broad, flattened, spatulate bill—perfect for scything through leaf litter to snatch insects and spiders. Adults have an olive-brown back, a pale yellow belly, and a subtle but striking facial pattern: a whitish eye-ring and a faint, tawny crown stripe that can be raised as a small crest when excited. A special feature is its unique foraging behavior; rather than hawking prey from a perch like most flycatchers, it hops along the forest floor, using its wide bill to flip dead leaves with a side-to-side motion, almost like a tiny anteater. This secretive, ground-dwelling lifestyle, combined with its stubby tail and leaf-tossing technique, makes the Stub-tailed Spadebill one of the most specialized and fascinating understory insectivores in its range.

Faits amusants

Despite its name, the stub-tailed spadebill’s tail isn’t unusually short—it’s actually a typical proportion for its family, but the “stub” refers to its *spade-shaped* bill, which is surprisingly wide and flat, like a miniature trowel, used to scoop up insects from leaf litter. It has a quirky habit of rapidly flicking its wings while foraging, a motion thought to flush out hidden prey. One of its most bizarre adaptations is its call: a loud, metallic *tink!* that sounds more like a dropped coin than a bird, making it far easier to hear than spot in the dense understory. It also engages in “ant-following,” trailing army ant swarms not to eat the ants, but to catch the fleeing bugs they flush out.

Habitats et répartition

The Stub-tailed Spadebill inhabits lowland humid forests and tall second-growth woodlands, typically near watercourses such as streams or rivers. It prefers dense understory vegetation with a closed canopy, often associating with bamboo thickets or areas of tangled vines and leaf litter where it forages for insects. Its geographical range extends from southeastern Mexico (including the Yucatán Peninsula) through Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, reaching into western Panama. The species is generally found at elevations from sea level up to about 1,000 meters, but it is most common in the Caribbean lowlands and the Pacific slope of Central America.

Comportements & Reproduction

The stub-tailed spadebill is generally solitary or found in pairs, with males defending small territories in dense understory. Mating is monogamous during the breeding season, and courtship involves the male performing a low, buzzing song from a concealed perch while flicking its wings. Both sexes construct a dome-shaped nest with a side entrance, woven from rootlets and dead leaves, placed low in a bush or vine tangle. The female lays two eggs and incubates them alone, but both parents feed the chicks. A unique reproductive strategy is the nest’s deliberate placement near army ant swarms; the parents exploit the flushed insects and arthropods for easy feeding, reducing foraging time while the young are vulnerable.

Alimentation

The Stub-tailed Spadebill is an insectivorous bird, with its diet consisting almost exclusively of small arthropods, particularly insects and spiders. It forages actively in the understory of humid forests, often sallying from a low perch to snatch prey from the undersides of leaves or from the air. An interesting fact about its feeding behavior is the use of its unusually broad, flat bill—which gives it the "spadebill" name—as a specialized tool to scoop up and crush hard-bodied beetles and other tough insects that other small flycatchers might avoid. Additionally, despite its tiny size, it has been observed taking surprisingly large prey items, such as katydids and large orthopterans, subduing them with rapid bill snaps before swallowing them whole.

Couleurs

The Stub-tailed Spadebill has olive-brown upperparts and a whitish throat and belly, with a faint yellowish wash on the breast. Its most distinctive feature is a small, pale yellow crown patch often concealed by grayish-brown head feathers. The face shows a subtle buffy eyering and a short, pale supercilium. This drab, uniform coloration provides effective camouflage in the dim understory of humid lowland forests.