Dark-bellied Cinclodes

The dark-bellied cinclodes is 18 to 20 cm (7.1 to 7.9 in) long and weighs about 36 to 50 g (1.3 to 1.8 oz). It is a largish cinclodes with a long decurved bill. The sexes have the same plumages, and the two subspecies differ very little. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a white supercilium that begins at the forehead, dark brown lores and ear coverts, and a white malar area with some faint darker flecks. Their crown and nape are dark brown and their upperparts a slightly lighter brown. Their wings are dark brown with blackish brown primary coverts. Their primary coverts and flight feathers each have a thin pale rufous-tinged white band. Their tail is dark brown; the outer three pairs of feathers have progressively more tawny-whitish on their tips. Their throat is whitish with faint darker specks and their underparts mostly dull dark brown. Their upper breast has pale spots that become streaks through the lower breast onto the upper belly. Their undertail coverts are dark brown with whitish tips. Their iris is dark brown, their bill brown to blackish, and their legs and feet brown to blackish. Juveniles are like adults with pale edges on the feathers of their back and less distinct breast markings. Subspecies C. p. chilensis is slightly smaller than the nominate, with buffier tips on the outer tail feathers and slightly browner underparts with less streaking on the belly.

The dark-bellied cinclodes is native to the southern cone of South America. Subspecies C. p. chilensis is the more northerly. It is found in south-central Chile between the Atacama and Aysén regions and in adjacent western Argentina between Mendoza Province and Santa Cruz Province. The nominate subspecies is found south to Tierra del Fuego from Aysén in Chile and Santa Cruz in Argentina. The species inhabits a variety of landscapes, all of which are associated with water. These include rocky coastal beaches, lakesides, river and stream banks, and the edges of wet forest. Even in semi-arid areas it stays near water. In the northern part of its range it mostly occurs inland but in the south it is found at sea level. In the Andes it reaches elevations of about 3,500 m (11,500 ft).

The dark-bellied cinclodes feeds on marine and terrestrial invertebrates, and always near water. It usually forages singly or in pairs, gleaning prey from the ground, rocks, debris on beaches, and the water's edge.