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The Great Antshrike, ''Taraba major'', is a Passerine Bird in the Antbird family. It is the only member of the genus ''Taraba'' ( Lesson , 1830 ). It is a resident breeder in the tropical New World in southern Mexico , Central America , Trinidad and South America down to northern Argentina and southeastern Brazil . This is a bird of thickets, Cocoa and Citrus plantations and sometimes gardens, with a preference for dense undergrowth. It is usually found as territorial pairs. The female lays two, sometimes three, grey-marked white eggs in a deep cup nest in a shrub, which are incubated by both sexes for 14 days to hatching. The chicks fledge in another 12 days. The Great Antshrike is a large and distinctive antbird, typically 20.3 cm long, and weighs 56 g. It has a crest, heavy hooked bill, and brilliant red eyes. The adult male has black upperparts, with two white wingbars and white underparts. There is a white dorsal patch normally concealed except in threat display; young males are similar to the adult, but have rufous wing coverts. The female has rich rufous upperparts and white underparts. The Great Antshrike feeds on Insect s and other Arthropod s gleaned from foliage. It will also take small Lizard s and Mammal s. It is a skulking species, which may be located by its song, 30 to 40 musical ''pook-pook-pook'' notes, or a snarled ''churrrr''. Interestingly, sleeping birds are readily located at sites such as the Asa Wright Nature Centre on Trinidad. References
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