Great Rufous Woodcreeper

Xiphocolaptes major

The website Birds of the World offers this description of the Great Rufous Woodcreeper: The Great Rufous Woodcreeper is a giant among woodcreepers; it is not only large and big bodied but has a thick and stout bill. This denizen of Chaco forest is well named as it is big and rufous. Many other woodcreepers have a predominance of rufous coloration, but the Great Rufous is evenly rufous with little to no markings on that rufous plumage. It lacks strong streaking, barring or spotting as is typical in this family. The throat is whitish; the eyes reddish, and the bill a pale blue-grey. However a most striking feature is that the lores are entirely black, creating a black-masked look that is distinctive, and contrasts with the pale blue-grey bill. Vocally this is a loud woodcreeper but it does not vocalize all that often, but has a vocalization similar to that of the other large Xiphocolaptes woodcreepers. It is a slowing, lilting series of awkward sounding notes “yakaa….yakaa….yakaa….. yakaa…..yakaa…” 

I  saw and photographed my first Great Rufous Woodcreeper on the late morning of August 29, 2023 at the Pouso Alegre Lodge in the Pantanal of Brazil.  The bird was foraging around the base of a large tree just outside the dining hall at the lodge.  As soon as I saw the huge bill on the bird, I knew it was a species I had never experienced before.  Here are a couple of pictures I took that day.