Royal cinclodes

{{Speciesbox | name = Royal cinclodes | image = Cinclodes aricomae - Royal Cinclodes; Abra Malaga, Cuzco, Peru.jpg | status = EN | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name=IUCN>{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2025 |title=Royal Cinclodes ''Cinclodes aricomae'' |article-number=e.T22724402A275779385 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-2.RLTS.T22724402A275779385.en}}</ref> | genus = Cinclodes | species = aricomae | authority = (Carriker, 1932) | range_map = Cinclodes aricomae map.svg }}

The '''royal cinclodes''' ('''''Cinclodes aricomae''''') is an Endangered passerine bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae.<ref name=IOC13.2>{{cite web |url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/new/bow/ovenbirds/ |title=Ovenbirds, woodcreepers |website=IOC World Bird List |version =v 13.2 | editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | editor3-last=Rasmussen | editor3-first=Pamela | editor3-link=Pamela Rasmussen |date=July 2023 |access-date=July 31, 2023 }}</ref><ref name=IUCN/> It is found in Bolivia and Peru.<ref name=SACCcountries>Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 31 May 2023. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved May 31, 2023</ref>

==Taxonomy and systematics==

Several authors have treated the royal and stout-billed cinclodes (''C. excelsior'') as conspecific. The South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society considers the evidence to be weak but is seeking a proposal for that treatment's acceptance.<ref name=SACClist>Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 31 May 2023. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved May 31, 2023</ref> The royal cinclodes is monotypic.<ref name=IOC13.2/>

==Description==

The royal cinclodes is {{convert|20|to|21|cm|in|sigfig=2|abbr=on}} long and weighs about {{convert|50|g|oz|sigfig=2|abbr=on}}. It is a large cinclodes with a decurved, thick-based, bill. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults have a pale buffish supercilium that extends to the nape, a whitish malar area with thin dark bars, and an otherwise dark brown face. Their crown and upperparts are dark brown. Their wings are also dark brown, with black-edged rufous across the base of the flight feathers. Their tail is blackish. Their throat is whitish with thin dark bars and their underparts are dark brown with wide white streaks on the breast. Their iris is dark brown to brown, their bill black, and their legs and feet dark pinkish gray to black.<ref name=ROCI-BOW>Remsen, Jr., J. V. and C. J. Sharpe (2020). Royal Cinclodes (''Cinclodes aricomae''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.roycin1.01 retrieved September 4, 2023</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==

The royal cinclodes is found very locally from south-central Peru's Department of Junín through the departments of Apurímac, Cuzco, and Puno into Bolivia's La Paz Department. It inhabits humid ''Polylepis''-''Gynoxys'' woodlands, where it favors boggy areas at the base of steep rocky slopes. In elevation it ranges from {{convert|3500|to|4600|m|ft|abbr=on}}.<ref name=ROCI-BOW/>

==Behavior== ===Movement===

The royal cinclodes is a year-round resident throughout its range.<ref name=ROCI-BOW/>

===Feeding===

The royal cinclodes mostly feeds on invertebrates but also occasionally includes seeds and small vertebrates like frogs in its diet. It forages singly or in pairs, probing and digging for prey in among mossy rocks, in decaying wood, and in boggy areas. It occasionally also gleans its prey from surfaces.<ref name=ROCI-BOW/>

===Breeding===

The royal cinclodes' breeding season is thought to begin in December. One known nest was in a cavity behind a cleft in a cliff; it contained two nestlings that were fed by both parents. Nothing else is known about its breeding biology.<ref name=ROCI-BOW/>

{{birdsong|url=https://xeno-canto.org/species/Cinclodes-aricomae |species=royal cinclodes}} ===Vocalization===

The royal cinclodes' song is "a very loud trill".<ref name=ROCI-BOW/>

==Status==

The IUCN originally assessed the royal cinclodes in 1988 as Threatened, and from 1994 – 2025 as Critically Endangered. It is currently considered to be Endangered. It has a very small and fragmented range and an estimated population of between 200 – 500 mature individuals that is believed to be decreasing. It is primarily threatened by habitat degradation caused by deforestation and overgrazing associated with agriculture.<ref name=IUCN/> It occurs in three nominally protected areas that nevertheless "are vulnerable to grazing and burning".<ref name=ROCI-BOW/> Climate change may also pose a threat.<ref>Sekercioglu, C.H., Schneider, S.H., Fay, J.P. and Loarie, S.R. (2008). Climate change, elevational range shifts, and bird extinctions. Conservation Biology. 22(1): 140-150.</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * [http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=9773&m=0 BirdLife Species Factsheet]

royal cinclodes Category:Birds of the Bolivian Andes Category:Birds of the Peruvian Andes Category:Critically endangered animals Category:Critically endangered biota of South America royal cinclodes