Urich's tyrannulet

Urich's tyrannulet (Phyllomyias urichi) is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae. It is endemic to Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Urich's tyrannulet
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Tyrannidae
Genus: Phyllomyias
Species:
P. urichi
Binomial name
Phyllomyias urichi
(Chapman, 1899)

It is a very rare species that had previously only been seen three times: once in 1899, a second time in the 1940s, and a third time in 2005. In May 2021, an expedition to rediscover the species was undertaken in order to verify that it had not yet gone extinct. However, the locality the species was sighted at in 2005 had been deforested by that point, and several other potential habitats had also been degraded. However, a thickly forested mountainside near Yucucual, Monagas was identified in a photo on Instagram as a potential habitat for the species. The expedition to this area was successful in spotting 2 different pairs of P. urichi, marking the first observation of the species in over a decade and the first clear photos and sound recordings ever taken of the species.[2][3][4]

It is olive-green in color and has a shrill call. Ornithologist David Ascanio, who led the team that rediscovered the species, has described it as resembling a "little tiny Shrek" due to its coloration.[5]

References
  1. BirdLife International (2016). "Phyllomyias urichi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22728377A94982868. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22728377A94982868.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. "Tiny Passerine Bird Rediscovered in Venezuela: Urich's Tyrannulet | Biology | Sci-News.com". Breaking Science News | Sci-News.com. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
  3. Conservancy, American Bird. "Venezuelan Team Captures First-ever Photos and Sounds of Rediscovered Bird - eBird". ebird.org. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
  4. "FOUND: After Dodging Rediscovery for Nearly 16 Years, a Tiny Bird Reveals Itself to Expedition in Venezuela". American Bird Conservancy. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
  5. Murphy, Devin (June 3, 2021). "FOUND: Expedition in Venezuela rediscovers 'little tiny Shrek' after 15 years hiding in cloud forest". www.rewild.org. Retrieved 2022-02-16.


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