Antthrushes

Antthrushes, part of the Formicariidae family, are small to medium-sized forest-dwelling birds native to tropical and subtropical regions of Central and South America. They range in length from 10 to 20 cm (4 to 8 inches), bearing a muted color palette of browns, blacks, and whites. Closely related to ovenbirds and tapaculos, antthrushes have a distinctive upright stance due to their long legs and reduced tails, adaptations that suit their predominantly ground-based insectivorous lifestyle. Both sexes share the incubation duties, laying two or three eggs in nests situated in trees. The family consists of 12 species split across two genera. Previous classifications were reconfigured based on molecular phylogenetics, with some species formerly placed here now reassigned to the gnateater and Grallariidae families. Antthrushes, while resembling small rails and walking like starlings, are not actually related to true thrushes.

Species Categories

African & New World Parrots Albatrosses Anhingas, Darters Antbirds Antpittas Antthrushes Austral Storm Petrels Barn Owls Black-capped Donacobius Caracaras, Falcons Cardinals & Allies Chachalacas, Curassows, Guans Chats, Old World Flycatchers Cormorants, Shags Cotingas Crescentchests Crows, Jays Cuckoos Dippers Ducks, Geese, Swans Finches, Euphonias Finfoots Flamingos Frigatebirds Gannets, Boobies Gnatcatchers Gnateaters Grebes Gulls, Terns, Skimmers Herons, Bitterns Hoatzin Hummingbirds Ibises, Spoonbills Jacamars Jacanas Kingfishers Kites, Hawks, Eagles Larks Limpkin Magellanic Plover Manakins Mitrospingid Tanagers Mockingbirds, Thrashers Motmots New World Barbets New World Quail New World Sparrows New World Vultures New World Warblers Nightjars Northern Storm Petrels Oilbird Old World Parrots Old World Sparrows, Snowfinches Oropendolas, Orioles, Blackbirds Ospreys Ovenbirds Owls Oystercatchers Painted-snipes Pelicans Penguins Petrels, Shearwaters, Diving Petrels Pheasants & Allies Pigeons, Doves Plovers Potoos Puffbirds Rails, Crakes & Coots Rheas Sandpipers, Snipes Sapayoa Screamers Seedsnipes Seriemas Sheathbills Skuas Starlings, Rhabdornis Stilts, Avocets Stone-curlews, Thick-knees Storks Sunbittern Swallows, Martins Swifts Tanagers & Allies Tapaculos Thrushes Thrush-tanager Tinamous Tityras, Becards, Sharpbill Toucan Barbets Toucans Trogons Tropicbirds Trumpeters Tyrant Flycatchers, Calyptura Vireos, Greenlets, Shrike-babblers Wagtails, Pipits Waxbills, Munias & Allies Waxwings Weavers, Widowbirds Woodpeckers Wrens

Birda Blog

A passionate photographer is outdoors, equipped with a top-notch camera for bird photography.

14 best cameras for bird photography

August 9, 2022

John White

A woman in a jacket birdwatching out in nature, looking at her phone and considering the best birding app.

11 of the best birdwatching apps in the UK

August 8, 2022

John White

A large flock of Red-necked Stints, a great bird to look for when learning how to start birdwatching.

How to start birdwatching – a helpful guide for beginners

January 18, 2022

John White

People looking at a sunset in a Top 10 Birdwatching Park in the US

The top 10 birdwatching parks in the USA

December 7, 2022

Sarah Cunningham

The Best US States For Birdwatching - map of USA with state names

The best US states for bird watching, a helpful illustrated guide

January 17, 2022

John White

Three people walking in nature in a highland, birdwatching and using one of the best free birdwatching apps

What are the best free birdwatching apps?

March 28, 2023

Will Hall

Children are outdoors, enthusiastically observing and admiring birds in their natural habitat.

12 of the best birdwatching apps in the USA

February 9, 2023

Sarah Cunningham

8x vs 10 x binoculars - person holding their pair in hand

Binoculars for birdwatching 8x vs 10x magnification

What Our Birders Say

Jane N

A great app

Enjoying it immensely and finding it useful too. Recording the different birds and counting them is showing me how the present climate is affecting them all. I've trebled the numbers by planting native hedging. A great app.

Nicole

Gets me outdoors more

I'm still loving this app. I use it most days & gets me outdoors more. Enjoying watching others progress and photo's, it's improved my wellbeing.... I love this app! I can keep a record of sightings and see what others have seen too.

Ellesse_W

Learning Birding with Birda

I’m relatively new to birding as a hobby, and Birda is a great way to keep track off all the species I see. I’m still working on my ID skills, but the app is great for figuring out potential species, and the online community is so friendly and helpful. Definitely recommend Birda to both early and serious birders! 🐦

Paul F

Very good database

Highly recommend. It great that this app shows you male Vs female variations when posting. Very good database I'm really impressed.

Louise L

Easy to use and accurate

Love this app. It is easy to use and accurate, Their backup communication is really good. I noted a missing species. All through the process, I was kept informed about the progress in correcting the information. I now have the corrected, updated version. 😁 Thanks!

Robred 2

Fun way to add to your birdwatching experience

I enjoy watching birds in my backyard, but this app helped me really pay attention while on vacation this summer. It was fun to add new birds to my bird watching app.

778

Great bird recording

For a while I’ve been trying to find an app to easily record bird lists and day out and struggled to find one that I like. Birda is great for this, straightforward and a great community!

Foxgirl100

Great app for beginner twitchers

I’ve had a passion of photographing birds for a long time now but have only just gotten into proper birdwatching, and this app is brilliant for those just getting started. There is a great sense of community among users and the app is very easy to use and professional. Awesome app altogether

Carl B

Helped me to identify more birds

Love this app and has helped me to identify more birds. The challenges and badges are great for keeping the motivation going to get out and keep birding.

Emcil24

A Friendly Place

I love using the bird app, I have a pretty good knowledge of birds. But I do have some gaps in it, so it’s nice to have a safe space to check on a sighting to confirm the species. It’s really enjoyable and I love the badges you can collect. It’s like a real life Pokémon go.

As featured in