ARTIGO/ARTICLE Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia, 20(3), 2012 Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia, 20(3), 246-267 Outubro de 2012 / October 2012 INTRODUCTION e avifaunal composition of transitional zones between the caatinga and the cerrado morphoclimatic domains is very complex in eastern Brazil (Parrini et al. 1999, Vasconcelos & D’Angelo Neto 2007, Santos 2008, Lopes et al. 2010). Despite the fact that endemic and typical species of both regions can be found side- by-side in these areas, their distribution depends on the mountain slope, elevation, phytophysiognomies and specific microhabitats (Parrini et al. 1999, Carvalhaes 2001, Vasconcelos & D’Angelo Neto 2007, Santos 2008). Avifaunal inventories for ecotonal areas in the Espinhaço Range, an important area of bird endemism in Brazil (Vasconcelos 2008), are available for two sites: the Chapada Diamantina region, in central Bahia state (Parrini et al. 1999, Carvalhaes 2001, Carvalhaes & Machado 2008), and the central mountains of northern Minas Gerais state (Vasconcelos & D’Angelo Neto 2007). In both areas, endemic and/or typical birds of the caatinga and the cerrado have been recorded. Brejinho das Ametistas is located in a transitional zone between the caatinga and the cerrado regions. ough the 19 th century naturalists Johann Baptist von Spix and e avifauna of Brejinho das Ametistas, Bahia, Brazil: birds in a caatinga-cerrado transitional zone, with comments on taxonomy and biogeography Marcelo Ferreira de Vasconcelos 1,11 , Leandro Nunes Souza 2 , Charles Duca 3 , José Fernando Pacheco 4,10 , Ricardo Par- rini 5,10 , Guilherme Alves Serpa 6 , Ciro Albano 7 , Carlos Rodrigo Meirelles Abreu 8 , Sidnei Sampaio dos Santos 9 and Francisco Pedro da Fonseca Neto 9 1 Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, Pós-graduação em Zoologia de Vertebrados and Museu de Ciências Naturais, Avenida Dom José Gaspar, 500, Prédio 41, Coração Eucarístico, CEP 30535-610, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil. 2 Rua Benvinda de Carvalho, 119, apartamento 201, Santo Antônio, CEP 30330-180, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil. 3 Universidade Vila Velha, Unidade Acadêmica II, Ciências Biológicas, Rua Comissário José Dantas de Mello, 21, Boa Vista, CEP 29102-770, Vila Velha, ES, Brasil. 4 Rua Bambina, 50, apartamento 104, Botafogo, CEP 22251-050, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil. 5 Rua Desembargador Izidro, 160, apartamento 601, Tijuca, CEP 20521-160, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil. 6 Rua Dona Delfina, 120, apartamento 401, Tijuca, CEP 20511-270, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil. 7 Rua das Laranjeiras, 485, Lagoa Redonda, CEP 60831-620, Fortaleza, CE, Brasil. 8 Rua Presidente Pedreira, 35, Bloco B, apartamento 1202, CEP 24210-470, Niterói, RJ, Brasil. 9 Associação Baiana para Conservação dos Recursos Naturais - ABCRN, Rua Edson Roseira, 298, Santo André, CEP 48110-000, Catu, BA, Brasil. 10 CBRO - Comitê Brasileiro de Registros Ornitológicos. 11 Corresponding author: mfvasconcelos@gmail.com Received on 9 March 2012. Accepted on 11 June 2012. ABSTRACT: Brejinho das Ametistas (14°15’46”S; 42°31’28”W) is situated in a transitional zone between the caatinga and the cerrado, in southern Bahia. Here, we present an avifaunal survey conducted between October 2007 and May 2011, totaling 467 h of sampling effort in different vegetation types of this area, which include cerrado sensu stricto, “campos rupestres”, “carrascos”, arboreal and shrubby caatingas, and gallery forests. We recorded 259 bird species in the region, of which two are threatened: Penelope jacucaca and Phylloscartes roquettei. We also provide comments on taxonomy and/or range extensions for some taxa, such as Formicivora iheringi, Sclerurus scansor aff. cearensis, Lepidocolaptes squamatus/wagleri, Syndactyla dimidiata, Hylocryptus rectirostris and Cyanoloxia moesta. In comparison to two other transitional areas of caatinga-cerrado along the Espinhaço Range - the northern Chapada Diamantina (Bahia) and the southern Central Espinhaço (Minas Gerais) - Brejinho das Ametistas shelters less Atlantic Forest birds, probably because the region presents lower elevations and is located in the rain shadow of the “Planalto de Conquista”, in eastern Bahia. An analysis of patterns of distribution of endemic and typical birds of the caatinga and cerrado suggests a gradient in which endemic and typical cerrado bird species richness decrease from south to north, but this is not the case for caatinga birds, which present similar richness along this gradient. KEY-WORDS: Bird survey; caatinga; cerrado; geographic distribution; taxonomy.