About Machaeropterus pyrocephalus (P.L.Sclater, 1852)
The fiery-capped manakin, scientifically named Machaeropterus pyrocephalus (P.L.Sclater, 1852), measures 8 to 9 cm (3.1 to 3.5 in) in length and weighs approximately 10 g (0.35 oz). This species displays sexual dimorphism. Adult males of the nominate subspecies have a golden crown and nape with a red stripe running down the center; this feature gives the species both its English common name and scientific specific epithet. The rest of their face is olive, their upperparts range from rosy rufous to maroon, and their tail and most of their wings are olive. Their wings have some white markings on the inner secondaries and black spots on the tertials. Their throat is whitish, and the remainder of their underparts are streaked with dull pink and whitish. Adult females have olive upperparts, a pale grayish throat, and dull pale olive underparts with some blurry streaking, plus a yellowish tinge on the belly. Males of the subspecies M. p. pallidiceps have a paler yellow crown than the nominate subspecies, and their central red stripe is much reduced; they are otherwise identical to nominate males. Females of M. p. pallidiceps are identical to nominate females. Both sexes of both subspecies have a dark red iris, a blackish bill with a paler base to the lower mandible, and pinkish to purplish-cream legs and feet. Juveniles of both sexes have a similar appearance to adult females. The fiery-capped manakin has a disjunct distribution, with two subspecies, M. p. pallidiceps being the more northerly. It occurs in Venezuela's Orinoco Basin, along the lower Caura River and middle Pargua River in Bolívar, with an additional sight record from northwestern Amazonas (Venezuela). It is also found in northern Roraima, in extreme northern Brazil. While the International Ornithological Congress does not include Colombia in this subspecies' range, the independent South American Classification Committee has recorded M. p. pallidiceps in Colombia. The nominate subspecies has an oddly shaped distribution across the Amazon Basin, where it occurs at scattered sites. In Peru, it occupies a small separate area in San Martín, and its main range within the country is in the southeast, in Ucayali and Madre de Dios. From there, its range extends east through northern Bolivia and into Brazil. In Brazil, it is found in Acre and southern Amazonas; the largest section of its Brazilian range runs from Rondônia northeast across northern Mato Grosso and through Pará in a narrow band to the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Amazon. South of this band, its range continues across most of Mato Grosso and extends further east to western Bahia and northwestern Minas Gerais. The fiery-capped manakin lives in the interior and along the edges of humid primary forest, humid secondary forest, and woodland. In terms of elevation, it occurs between approximately 100 and 200 m (300 and 700 ft) in Venezuela, and mostly up to 1,100 m (3,600 ft) in Peru, reaching as high as 1,200 m (3,900 ft) in some local areas.
