Major range extension for Orange-fronted Plushcrown Metopothrix aurantiaca in the central Amazon of Brazil

Abstract

Orange-fronted Plushcrown Metopothrix aurantiaca is a unique, but easily overlooked, small furnariid found in the midstorey and canopy of riverine areas in the Amazon. The species' previously published distribution includes parts of southernmost Colombia, eastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, northern Bolivia and western Brazil. In the easternmost part of its distribution (Brazil), M. aurantiaca occurs in the states of Acre, Amazonas and Rondônia, east to 64°W. We present nine new records of the species in Brazil, all of them east of its previously known distribution and together extending the range by c.750 km. These new records derive from sampling that includes collecting expeditions, exhaustive várzea surveys, and incidental observations. We propose a new continuous distribution for this species restricted to white-water river floodplains with known occurrences.