Crested Becard

Belongs to the passerine family Tityridae, standing out as the largest member of its genus, with an average body length of 7.1 to 7.9 inches (18 to 20 centimeters) and a weight of approximately 40 grams. This species exhibits pronounced sexual dimorphism. The adult male features a striking glossy slate-black upperparts, a dark crown that conceals a semi-hidden white patch on the nape, and contrasting pale grey underparts. Its wings and tail are mostly blackish with narrow lighter margins. Conversely, the female is distinctly colored, presenting a warm cinnamon-rufous dorsal coloration, a dark slate-grey crown, and creamy-buff underparts. Both sexes possess a robust, broad, and slightly hooked bill of a bluish-grey color with a black tip, accompanied by dark eyes surrounded by a faint orbital ring.

Geographical distribution: Occupies a vast but highly disjunct range across South America. One distinct population resides along the Andean slopes from western Venezuela, extending through Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, down to western Bolivia. Another major population occupies the lowlands of central and eastern South America, covering extensive areas of Brazil (from Maranhão and Bahia to Rio Grande do Sul), eastern Bolivia, Paraguay, northwestern Uruguay, and northern Argentina (reaching as far south as Buenos Aires province during the breeding season).

Habitat: Colonizes a diverse array of wooded environments. It shows a strong preference for montane humid forests, the edges of tropical and subtropical rainforests, gallery forests, secondary growth woodlands, and semi-open biomes like the Cerrado and Chaco. Additionally, it can adapt to degraded areas, urban parks, and agricultural borders. Its altitudinal distribution is wide, ranging from sea level in eastern South America up to 9,200 feet (2,800 meters) in the Andean valleys.

Feeding: Maintains an omnivorous diet, primarily targeting invertebrates and small fruits. It actively preys on a wide variety of insects, such as caterpillars, beetles, grasshoppers, and ants, alongside spiders. It supplements this diet with berries and small fruits from various botanical families, particularly when insect populations dwindle. Foraging occurs mainly in the middle and upper levels of the forest canopy, where it searches for food along branches and leaves.

Behavior: Typically encountered singly or in pairs, frequently perching in an upright posture on high, exposed branches to scan its territory. To capture prey, it utilizes sally-hovering and gleaning techniques, plucking insects directly from the foliage or bark. It is a regular participant in mixed-species foraging flocks, moving alongside tanagers and other flycatchers. Southern populations are migratory, traveling northward toward the Amazon basin during the austral winter.

Nesting: Involves the construction of a remarkably large and conspicuous nest. This structure is globular or bag-shaped, measuring up to 20 inches (50 centimeters) in diameter, and is meticulously woven from twigs, dry leaves, moss, lichens, and plant fibers. It features a circular entrance hole on the side, near the bottom. The nest is typically placed high in the canopy, between 33 and 82 feet (10 to 25 meters) above the ground, suspended from a fork of an outer tree branch. The female carries out most of the construction and incubates the clutch of 2 to 4 cream-colored eggs, which are heavily speckled with brown, while the male actively patrols and defends the nesting territory from predators.

Conservation status: Listed as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Although forest fragmentation and habitat loss driven by agricultural expansion present localized threats, the species´ broad geographic distribution, stable population dynamics, and ability to persist in disturbed secondary forests prevent it from qualifying for any threatened categories.