Red-breasted chat

Red-breasted chat
Adult male in Oaxaca, Mexico
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Cardinalidae
Genus: Granatellus
Species:
G. venustus
Binomial name
Granatellus venustus
Bonaparte, 1850
Distribution of the red-breasted chat

The red-breasted chat (Granatellus venustus) is a small passerine bird in the family Cardinalidae, the cardinals and cardinal grosbeaks. It occurs principally in western Mexico, with a limited extension into far-western Guatemala.[2] The species inhabits dense vegetation in dry and seasonally deciduous forests and is notable for the strongly contrasting plumages of the sexes.[3]

Taxonomy and systematics

The genus Granatellus was traditionally placed in the New World warbler family Parulidae. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2007 found that the genus instead belonged to Cardinalidae.[4] This placement was adopted by the American Ornithologists' Union in 2009.[5]

Two subspecies are recognized by AviList:[6]

The insular form francescae has a proportionately longer tail, more white in the tail feathers, a white hind collar, and a reduced or absent black breast band. Some taxonomic authorities, including BirdLife International, treat it as a separate species called the Tres Marias chat (Granatellus francescae).[7] In 2023, the North American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society rejected a proposal to recognize the split, noting the absence of published genetic data for francescae and the lack of a formal analysis of its vocalizations.[8]

Description

The red-breasted chat measures 14.5 to 16 cm (5.7 to 6.3 in) in length. Twelve measured specimens weighed between 10.2 and 11.4 g (0.36 and 0.40 oz).[3] The species exhibits pronounced sexual dimorphism.

The adult male of the nominate subspecies has mostly bluish-gray upperparts, a black face and tail, a broad white supercilium, and a black band across the upper breast. Its chin, throat, sides, and flanks are white, while the breast, belly, and undertail region are vermilion. The bill is narrow and pointed.[3]

The adult female is slate-gray above. Its face is patterned in muted shades of buff and gray, the breast and belly are buff, and the undertail coverts are salmon-pink. Immature males resemble adult males but have less black on the head and paler, whitish underparts with a pink wash toward the rear. Immature females resemble adult females.[3]

Distribution and habitat

The nominate subspecies is found from Sinaloa south along Mexico's Pacific slope to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, continuing through interior Chiapas into far-western Guatemala. Its range also extends inland along the Balsas River basin to Morelos. The subspecies G. v. francescae is restricted to the Tres Marías Islands.[3][8]

The red-breasted chat was long considered endemic to Mexico. Field observations in the Nentón Valley of Guatemala's Huehuetenango Department, including a pair observed in April 2015 and an immature male recorded in January 2016, documented its occurrence and provided the first evidence of breeding in Guatemala.[2]

The species primarily occupies the dense understory of thorn forest, tropical deciduous forest, scrubby woodland, and secondary growth. It has also been recorded in evergreen swamp forest inland from mangroves and in dense vegetation beside rivers. It generally occurs from sea level to 1,200 m (3,900 ft), although local records reach approximately 1,600 m (5,200 ft).[3]

A field study in the Chamela-Cuixmala Biosphere Reserve in Jalisco found that birds used deciduous forest more frequently than semi-deciduous forest and were captured substantially more often during the wet season than during the dry season.[9]

Behavior

Feeding

The red-breasted chat usually forages in dense vegetation close to the ground. Detailed dietary studies are lacking, but it is believed to feed principally on insects and other arthropods.[3]

Breeding

Breeding takes place during the wet season. Birds in breeding condition have been recorded from June through September, while nesting has been documented chiefly in June and July.[9]

The nest is a compact open cup constructed from plant fibers, stems, roots, and material such as Spanish moss, with finer material forming the lining. In the Chamela-Cuixmala study, ten nests were found between 48 and 103 cm (19 and 41 in) above the ground in small saplings no more than 2 m (6.6 ft) tall. Recorded clutches contained three or four eggs. Only the female incubated, but both parents fed the nestlings.[9]

Incubation lasted approximately 14 days, and the nestling period was estimated at eight to ten days. Of eight active nests monitored in the study, two successfully produced young and six were lost to predation.[9]

Vocalizations

The song consists of variable, mellow whistled phrases that may be repeated several times. Calls include short, wet-sounding notes commonly transcribed as plik or plek.[3] The vocalizations of the mainland and Tres Marías populations have not been formally compared using a sufficiently large sample.[8]

Status and conservation

The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed the red-breasted chat as Least Concern.[1] BirdLife International estimates the mainland population at 20,000–49,999 mature individuals and considers it to be decreasing.[10] BirdLife's conservation assessment follows its taxonomic treatment, under which the Tres Marías population is assessed separately as G. francescae.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2020). "Red-breasted Chat Granatellus venustus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020 e.T103804301A138432968. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  2. 1 2 Eisermann, Knut; Avendaño, Claudia (2018). "An update on the inventory, distribution and residency status of bird species in Guatemala". Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 138 (3): 148–229. doi:10.25226/bboc.v138i3.2018.a2.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Gulson, Eric R. (2020). "Red-breasted Chat (Granatellus venustus), version 1.0". In Schulenberg, Thomas S. (ed.). Birds of the World. Ithaca, New York: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. doi:10.2173/bow.rebcha1.01. {{cite encyclopedia}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  4. ↑ Klicka, John; Burns, Kevin; Spellman, Garth M. (2007). "Defining a monophyletic Cardinalini: A molecular perspective". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 45 (3): 1014–1032. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2007.07.006. PMID 17920298.
  5. ↑ Chesser, R. Terry; Banks, Richard C.; Barker, F. Keith; et al. (2009). "Fiftieth Supplement to the American Ornithologists' Union Check-List of North American Birds". The Auk. 126 (3): 705–714. doi:10.1525/auk.2009.8709.
  6. ↑ AviList Core Team (2026). "AviList: The Global Avian Checklist, v2025b". doi:10.2173/avilist.v2025b. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  7. 1 2 BirdLife International. "Tres Marias Chat Granatellus francescae". BirdLife DataZone. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 North American Classification Committee (2023). "Proposal 2023-C-13: Treat Granatellus francescae as a separate species from Red-breasted Chat G. venustus" (PDF). American Ornithological Society. pp. 92–96. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Vega Rivera, Jorge H.; Alvarado, Fernando; Lobato, J. Manuel; Escalante, Patricia (2004). "Phenology, habitat use, and nesting of the Red-breasted Chat (Granatellus venustus)". The Wilson Bulletin. 116 (1): 89–93. doi:10.1676/0043-5643(2004)116[0089:PHUANO]2.0.CO;2.
  10. ↑ BirdLife International. "Red-breasted Chat Granatellus venustus". BirdLife DataZone. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  • Wikimedia Commons logo Media related to Granatellus venustus at Wikimedia Commons
  • Recordings of the red-breasted chat at Xeno-canto
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