This species was first described in 1912 by the German-Brazilian ornithologist Emilie Snethlage who collected birds in Brazil for two decades. The specific name refers to "várzea", the Brazilian name for the seasonally flooded forested area close to the Amazon River. There are no subspecies. This bird occasionally hybridises with the white-barred piculet .
Description
The varzea piculet is a small species, some in length. The male differs from the female in having variable amounts of red on the fore and mid-crown; this red patch is the result of the crown feathers having broad red tips, and the rest of the crown in males and the whole crown in females is black with white speckles. The upper parts of the body are chocolate-brown, sometimes with an olive tinge, and occasionally slightly barred with black. The tail is deep brown apart from the central pair of feathers, which are whitish, and the two outer pairs of feathers which have a whitish bar near the tip. The underparts are some shade of brown with light barring and streaking in darker brown and white. The iris is brown, the beak is black and the legs and feet are bluish-grey. The juvenile is similar to the female but the underparts are more heavily barred. This piculet is unlikely to be confused with any other piculet because it is the only species in its range with dark underparts.
The varzea piculet is endemic to Brazil in tropical South America where it has a rather limited range. It lives along the Amazon River in a wildlife corridor, in the forest called várzea forest, a freshwater swamp forest. It ranges from the confluence of the Amazon River with the Rio Negro in a, variable-width corridor downstream for about to the confluence of the Trombetas Riverfrom the north. The confluence of the Tapajós River joins here from the south. Its typical habitat is dense forest with vines and creepers on the Amazon floodplain and adjoining swampy forested areas, wooded islands and riverine woodland. It is a sedentary and non-migratory species.
Ecology
The varzea piculet is presumed to feed on small invertebrates like other members of the genus, but its diet has not been studied. Its breeding habits are also poorly known, but the breeding season may be from June to December, and young birds have been recorded in September.
Status
The varzea piculet is a poorly known bird with a restricted range in the Brazilian rainforest. It is threatened by the clearance of the forest for agricultural purposes and by proposed changes in the Brazilian Forest Code which will allow landowners amnesty for illegal fellings and the right to leave narrower strips of forest alongside watercourse. There are also proposals to build dams to provide hydro-electric power in the area which will permanently flood part of its habitat. Suitable habitat for the bird is projected to reduce by 50% or more over the next ten years. For these reasons, the conservation status of this bird has been assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being "endangered".
