Natterer’s Slaty Antshrike

Natterer's slaty antshrike (Thamnophilus stictocephalus) is a species of bird in subfamily Thamnophilinae of family Thamnophilidae, the "typical antbirds". It is found in Bolivia and Brazil. == Taxonomy and systematics == Natterer's slaty antshrike was described by the Austrian ornithologist August von Pelzeln in 1868 and given its current binomial name Thamnophilus stictocephalus. Natterer's slaty antshrike has two subspecies, the nominate T. s. stictocephalus (Pelzeln, 1868) and T. s. parkeri (Isler, ML, Isler, PR & Whitney, 1997). The nominate subspecies previously had long been treated as a subspecies of T. punctatus, which was then called the slaty antshrike. Following the results of a study published in 1997, the slaty antshrike was split into six species. One of them is Natterer's slaty antshrike; the same study determined that the former T. p. stictocephalus was actually the two subspecies that make up Natterer's. To avoid confusion the remnant T. punctatus was given its present name of northern slaty antshrike. == Description == Natterer's slaty antshrike is 14 to 15 cm (5.5 to 5.9 in) long and weighs 19 to 22 g (0.67 to 0.78 oz). Members of genus Thamnophilus are largish members of the antbird family; all have stout bills with a…