Grallaria saturata Domaniewski & Stolzmann, 1918

Isler, Morton L., Chesser, Terry, Robbins, Mark B., Cuervo, Andrés M., Cadena, Carlos Daniel & Hosner, Peter A., 2020, Taxonomic evaluation of the Grallaria rufula (Rufous Antpitta) complex (Aves: Passeriformes: Grallariidae) distinguishes sixteen species, Zootaxa 4817 (1), pp. 1-74 : 14-15

Grallaria saturata Domaniewski & Stolzmann, 1918 , subspecies resurrected and elevated to species

Equatorial Antpitta

Includes populations designated rufula 2a, rufula 2b, rufula 2c and rufula 5 in the analysis.

Diagnosis. Overall plumage typically reddish-brown, underparts paler, but overall intensity variable. Vocalizations of G. saturata ( Fig. 7 ) are distinguished from all other taxa in the G. rufula complex except G. alvarezi by a short song that consists of a single note, followed by a longer interval and ending with an even longer terminal phrase whose structure appears to vary geographically (discussed in App. 1). Short songs of G. saturata differ diagnosably from those of G. alvarezi by flat or downslurred rather than rounded notes. Long songs of G. saturata differ from those of G. alvarezi in having note peaks at the same frequency or nearly so, whereas peaks of G. alvarezi notes decline substantially in frequency. Long song note shapes are typically more downslurred and wider in band width than notes of G. alvarezi .

Distribution. Iguaque Massif in the west slope of Eastern Andes in Boyacá and extreme southwestern Santand- er, Colombia; Central Andes from southern Antioquia to Tolima and in Cauca, Colombia; and the Andes from Nari- ño and western Putumayo, Colombia, south through Ecuador to Piura and Cajamarca, Peru, north of Río Marañón and east of Río Huancabamba, 2550–3650 m.

Plumage. Overall plumage of upperparts, including rectrices, remiges (primaries edged paler), crown and auriculars, typically reddish-brown (5YR 4/4) but variable; specimens from the southern end of the range of rufula 5 ( rufula 5b) in Zamora-Chinchipe, Ecuador, and from the northern end of the range of rufula 2 ( rufula 2b) in Quindío, Colombia, are lighter and browner than those from intervening populations at the northern end of the range of rufula 5 ( rufula 5a) and from Cauca, Colombia ( rufula 2c); coloration shades to color of underparts in malar area. Overall plumage of underparts typically reddish yellow-brown (7.5YR 4/8) but lighter or darker consistent with upperparts; center of belly and undertail coverts slightly or substantially paler and yellower (7.5YR 6/6–8/2); flank coloration like upperparts or breast (specimen photographs App. 6, Figs. A20 , A21, A33, and A34).

Etymology. The English name reflects the geographic location of the range of this species, which straddles the Equator.

Remarks. See remarks under G. alvarezi for possible additional vocal differences from that species. Vocal analysis in this clade was made difficult by geographically unbalanced availability of recordings and specimens. Although recordings of 112 individuals were available for rufula 5, only a handful of recordings was available for the three study populations comprising rufula 2, and nearly all were of short songs. Short songs varied but not sufficiently to distinguish populations with certainty. Notably, genetic distance was ~4% between rufula 5 and the rufula 2 populations. Additional field work in Colombia is needed to provide recordings, specimens, and tissue samples and to determine whether populations are continuous, parapatric or allopatric. Type locality of G. rufula saturata Domaniewski & Stolzmann, 1918 is San Rafael, Tungurahua, Ecuador, in the geographic range of rufula 5. The surprising occurrence of G. saturata in a small region on the west slope of the Eastern Andes surrounded by populations of G. rufula sensu stricto to the north, east, and south is discussed in the companion paper ( Chesser et al. 2020).

Figures

FIGURE 7. Songs of Grallaria saturata: (A) long song, Cerro Mongus, Carchi, Ecuador (Krabbe XC248386); (B) short song, Cajanuma, Loja, Ecuador (Krabbe XC250311).

FIGURE 20. Map showing the taxonomy and distribution of the Grallaria rufula complex as revised herein, Part 2: G. rufocinerea and populations formerly ascribed to G. blakei. Solid circles represent sectors (Isler 1997) that contain locations of genetic samples used in a companion paper (Chesser et al. 2020) and stars are sectors containing locations where specimens have been collected or vocalizations recorded. Sectors may contain more than one genetic or vocal sample or specimen. Lines encompass sectors attributed to the same taxon and are not projections of geographic range which can be found in the companion paper (Chesser et al. 2020).