Brown-mandibled aracari

The brown-mandibled aracari is considered a monotypic species by the International Ornithological Committee.[1] However, The South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society, the Clements taxonomy, and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) treat it as a subspecies of the ivory-billed aracari (P. azara).[3][2][4] The brown-mandibled aracari and the two subspecies of ivory-billed aracari recognized by the IOC have all at times been treated as species, but all three taxa interbreed where their ranges overlap.[5]

The brown-mandibled aracari is 36 to 45 cm (14 to 18 in) long and weighs 120 to 160 g (4.2 to 5.6 oz). It does not appreciably differ from the ivory-billed aracari in length, weight, or plumage but only in bill color. Adult males have a black cap above a chestnut head and throat, maroon-red nape and upper back, green lower back, and red rump. They have a narrow black band under the throat, a wide red band on the upper breast, a wide black band on the lower breast, a yellow belly, and green thighs. Adult females have a dark brown cap and a narrower black band below the throat than males. The bills of both sexes have a yellow to ivory maxilla with black and white markings on the edge that resemble teeth. Its mandible is mostly orange-brown with an ivory or yellow tip and a vertical yellow line at its base.[5]

The brown-mandibled aracari is found south of the Amazon River from eastern Peru to the Rio Madeira in western Brazil and south to central Bolivia. It inhabits a variety of forest landscapes including varzea, gallery forest, and secondary forest, and to a lesser extent terra firme, bamboo, cloudforest, and plantations. It is more common in early- to mid-successional forest than mature. In elevation it is mostly found below 600 m (2,000 ft) but is regularly found to 900 m (3,000 ft).[5]

The IUCN follows HBW taxonomy and so does not separately assess the ivory-billed and brown-mandibled aracaris. Taken as a whole it has a very large range, and though its population size is not known it is believed to be stable. No immeditate threats have been identified.[6] The "[v]aried habitats utilized and changing nature of its successional habitats suggest that [the] species is not likely to become threatened in near future.[5]