The recurve-billed bushbird (Clytoctantes alixii) is an Endangered species of Thamnophilid antbird that inhabits dense stands of secondary vegetation at the northern end of the Andes in Colombia and Venezuela.
However, in April 2004 the species was found in Venezuela in the foothills of Sierra de Perijá close to the border with Colombia,[5][6] during a Conservation International-financed Rapid Assessment (RAP) expedition consisting of ornithologists Miguel Lentino, Jorge Perez-Eman, Irving Carreño and Chris Sharpe working under the auspices of the Venezuela Audubon Society and the Phelps Ornithological Collection.
Four months later the first sound recordings were made and behavioral notes taken by British ornithologist Chris Sharpe.
Working in parallel, Colombian ornithology student Oscar Laverde rediscovered bushbirds in Norte de Santander, Colombia in July 2005.
The birds were subsequently studied in detail by Laverde, F. Gary Stiles and ornithology students of the Natural Sciences Institute of the National University of Colombia.
Subadult males are dark yellowish and blackish brown; their forehead, sides of the head, and throat are reddish yellow-brown and their wing coverts have white dots.
It has been observed seeking prey by pecking open and pulling strips from stems, and at least once has been seen attending an army ant swarm.
It is known from very small and widely separated locations within its former range, and its estimated population of between 150 and 700 mature individuals is believed to be decreasing.
The species might "prove to be more common and widespread than previously thought, and able to survive in secondary landscapes, but at present its ecological requirements are unknown".
There appears to be little attempt to control or regulate illegal deforestation there by the Venezuelan government and local political support for the invasion.
Despite the long-term consequences for the survival of the forest and its species, in the short term this may lead to creation of further bushbird habitat.