Rufous-banded Miner

The rufous-banded miner (Geositta rufipennis) is a species of bird in the subfamily Sclerurinae, the leaftossers and miners, of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile. == Taxonomy and systematics == The rufous-banded miner's taxonomy is unsettled. The International Ornithological Committee (IOC) assigns it these six subspecies: G. r. fasciata (Philippi & Landbeck, 1864) G. r. harrisoni Marin, Kiff & Peña, 1989 G. r. rufipennis (Burmeister, 1860) G. r. giaii Contreras, 1976 G. r. ottowi Hoy, G, 1968 G. r. hoyi Contreras, 1980 The Clements taxonomy and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World add a seventh, G. r. fragai (Nores, 1986), which the IOC includes in G. r. hoyi. Some authors suggest that the rufous-banded miner should be split into more than one species. This article follows the six-subspecies model. == Description == The rufous-banded miner is a medium to large member of its genus. It is 14 to 17 cm (5.5 to 6.7 in) long and weighs 25 to 54 g (0.88 to 1.9 oz). The sexes are alike. The nominate subspecies G. r. rufipennis has a brownish gray face with a pale supercilium and a dark gray-brown line behind the…