About Berlepschia rikeri (Ridgway, 1887)
Ridgway described the point-tailed palmcreeper, saying, "This handsome species, of very striking appearance, is entirely different in coloration from any Dendrocolaptine bird with which I am acquainted". The point-tailed palmcreeper measures 18 to 22 cm (7.1 to 8.7 in) in length and weighs 32 to 37 g (1.1 to 1.3 oz). Males and females have identical plumage. Adult individuals have a face patterned with thin black and white streaks. Their crown and upper back are also streaked with black and white, and the streaks become teardrop-shaped on the back. Their lower back, rump, and uppertail coverts are bright chestnut. Their tail is also bright chestnut, with pointed feathers that have stiffened bases. Their wing coverts are chestnut, while their flight feathers are blackish fuscous, and the secondaries have rufous edges. Their throat is white with long black streaks. Their breast has wide black and white streaks, which fade and lose their sharp definition on the belly. Their undertail coverts are barred black and white. The iris is orange-brown, the maxilla ranges from gray to dark gray, the mandible ranges from gray to light gray, and the legs and feet range from gray to dark gray. Juveniles have only small black dots on a white throat, and their breast is spotted rather than streaked. The point-tailed palmcreeper is distributed across an extensive range: from southern Venezuela east through the Guianas into northeastern Brazil; south through southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, and eastern Peru into northern Bolivia; and across Amazonian Brazil to the Atlantic coast, reaching as far south as the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Goiás. It primarily lives in Mauritia palm swamps and forest, and occasionally occurs in areas with other types of palms. These palm swamps can be located within evergreen forest or savanna. Throughout most of its range, it is found below 400 m (1,300 ft) in elevation. In Ecuador, it can reach elevations as high as 650 m (2,100 ft).
