| Zapata wren | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Troglodytidae |
| Genus: | Ferminia Barbour, 1926 |
| Species: | F. cerverai |
| Binomial name | |
| Ferminia cerverai Barbour, 1926 | |
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TheZapata wren (Ferminia cerverai) is a medium-sized grayish-brown bird that lives in denseshrubs of theZapata Swamp,Cuba. It is the only member of themonotypicalgenusFerminia, which is endemic to Cuba andendangered. This species was first described in 1926 byThomas Barbour and named after its co-discoverer,Fermín Zanón Cervera.
Measuring about 16 centimetres (6.3 in) in length, it is brown overall, though striped with black and with grayish underparts. Its tail is long. The bird'ssong is similar to that of thehouse wren, in that it is high-pitched and loud, described as a "musical warble preceded by guttural note, given in series of three or four phrases."[citation needed]
The Zapata wren is confined andendemic to theZapata Peninsula of southern Cuba. The Zapata wren'shabitat is typically freshwatermarsh and lowlandsavanna with scattered bushes and low trees. It feeds oninsects,spiders, small snails,lizards andberries. The wren typically makes its nest insawgrass tussocks. It is thought to breed between January and July.
Typical threats are fires in thedry season, drainage of thewetlands, destruction due to agriculture, andpredation by introduced mongooses and rats.
The Zapata wren was formally described by AmericanherpetologistThomas Barbour,[2] who gave it the specific namecerverai in honour of the wren's discoverer,Fermín Zanón Cervera, a Spaniard who had stayed on after theSpanish–American War and become a professionalnaturalist. Barbour had been accompanied by Cervera on his previous visits to Cuba, and on hearing of the strange birds to be found in the Zapata area, he sent the Spaniard on a series of trips into the region, eventually leading to the finding of the wren.[3] In Spanish, the wren is known simply asferminia.
