About Muscisaxicola juninensis Taczanowski, 1884
The puna ground tyrant (Muscisaxicola juninensis Taczanowski, 1884) measures 16 to 16.5 cm (6.3 to 6.5 inches) in length. Males and females share identical plumage patterns. Adult individuals have a dull cinnamon crown, a white spot above the lores, a faint pale supercilium, and a pale broken eye-ring set against an otherwise pale brownish gray face. Most of their upperparts are pale brownish gray, with a black lower rump. Their wings are dusky gray, and their tail is black with white edges on the outer webs of the outermost tail feathers. Their throat and belly are whitish, while their breast is pale gray. Adults have a dark iris, a black bill, and black legs and feet. Juveniles differ from adults: they have pale cinnamon edges on their wing coverts, and buffy-colored underparts.
This species is distributed along the Andes mountain range. Its range extends from Ancash Department in northwestern Peru, southward through Peru into the Arica and Tarapacá regions of northern Chile, and continues through western Bolivia to reach northwestern Argentina as far south as western Tucumán Province. It primarily lives in puna grassland and montane steppe, particularly favoring areas near rock outcrops, boulders, and cliffs. It also occurs along the edges of bogs, lakes, and marshes. Across its full range, it occurs at elevations between 3,200 and 5,000 m (10,500 and 16,400 ft); within Peru, its elevation range is narrower, falling between 3,800 and 4,800 m (12,500 and 15,700 ft).
