Phlegopsis Explained

Phlegopsis is a genus of insectivorous passerine birds in the antbird family, Thamnophilidae. They are known as "bare-eyes", which is a reference to a colourful bare patch of skin around their eyes. They are restricted to humid forest in the Amazon of South America. They are among the largest ant-followers in the family and are only rarely seen away from ant swarms.

Taxonomy

The pale-faced bare-eye, sometimes known as the pale-faced antbird, has often been placed in the monotypic genus Skutchia, but based on genetic evidence it should be placed in Phlegopsis,^[1] and this treatment was adopted by the SACC in 2010.^[2] Based on a single specimen a fourth species, the Argus bare-eye (P. barringeri) has been proposed, but it is a hybrid between P. erythroptera and P. nigromaculata.^[3]

The genus contains three species:^[4]

• Reddish-winged bare-eye (Phlegopsis erythroptera)
• Black-spotted bare-eye (Phlegopsis nigromaculata)
• Pale-faced bare-eye (Phlegopsis borbae)

Notes and References

1. Aleixo . A. . Burlamaqui . T.C.T. . Schneider . M.P.C. . Goncalves . E.C. . 2009 . Molecular systematics and plumage evolution in the monotypic obligate army-ant-following genus Skutchia (Thamnophilidae) . Condor . 111 . 2 . 382–387 . 10.1525/cond.2009.080097. 86429198 . free .
2. Web site: Brumfield . R.T. . Proposal (432): Merge Skutchia borbae into Phlegopsis (Thamnophilidae . South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society . April 2010 . 6 February 2018 .
3. Graves . Garry R. . 1992 . Diagnosis of a hybrid antbird (Phlegopsis nigromaculata X Phlegopsis erythroptera) and the rarity of hybridization among suboscines . Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington . 105 . 834–340 . 10088/16733 .
4. Web site: Gill . Frank . Frank Gill (ornithologist) . Donsker . David . 2018 . Antbirds . World Bird List Version 8.1 . International Ornithologists' Union . 4 February 2018 .