Broad-billed motmot

Electron platyrhynchum

Photo by Joost Brandsma (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
broad-billed motmot (en); udu-de-bico-largo (pt); motmot à bec large (fr); momoto picoancho (es); plattschnabelmotmot (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Coraciiformes
Family Momotidae

Range:
This species is found from the Honduras south to Peru, northern Bolivia and north-western Brazil. It is mostly absent from northern Brazil, Venezuela and the Guyanas.

Size:
These birds are 30-40 cm long and weigh 55-66 g.

Habitat:
The broad-billed motmot is mostly found in moist tropical forests, also using dry tropical forests and degraded patches of former forests. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.100 m.

Diet:
They feed mainly on insects and their larvae, particularly cicadas but also butterflies and dragonflies. They also take spiders, centipedes, small frogs and lizards.

Breeding:
Broad-billed motmots breed in March-July. The nest is a deep burrow excavated into a bank, often over a river or stream. There the female lays 2-3 eggs which are incubated by both parents for about 3 weeks. The chicks are fed insects by both parents and fledge 24-25 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as fairly common but patchily distributed. It is suspected to loose 13-14 % of suitable habitat over the next decade based on a model of Amazonian deforestation, so the population is likely to suffer a small decline n the near future.

Grey-breasted wood-wren

Henicorhina leucophrys

Photo by Hugo Loaiza (Neotropical Birds)

Common name:
grey-breasted wood-wren (en); uirapuru-de-peito-cinzento (pt); troglodyte à poitrine grise (fr); cucarachero pechigrís (es); einsiedlerzaunkönig (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Troglodytidae

Range:
This species is found from north-eastern Mexico south to northern Venezuela and Colombia, and along the Andes down to Bolivia.

Size:
These birds are 11 cm long and weigh 18 g.

Habitat:
The grey-breasted wood-wren is mostly found in moist tropical forests, also using nearby scrublands, bamboo stands and second growths. They are are present at altitudes of 400-4.000 m.

Diet:
The hunt small invertebrates among the vegetation.

Breeding:
Grey-breasted wood-wrens breed in March-July. The nest is a globular structure with an antechamber and a downwards entrance, made of dark rootlets and green moss. It is usually placed in overhanging vegetation in a gorge or by a road-side. The female lays 2 white eggs, which are incubated for 19-20 days. The chicks fledge 14-18 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range and a global population estimated at 0,5-5 million individuals. The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and fragmentation.

Black francolin

Francolinus francolinus

Photo by Ahmet Karatash (Trek Nature)

Common name:
black francolin (en); francolim-escuro (pt); francolin noir (fr); francolín común (es); halsbandfrankolin (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Galliformes
Family Phasianidae

Range:
This species is found from Turkey and Israel, through Syria, Iraq, Iran and Pakistan, and into northern India, Nepal, south-western China and Bangladesh.

Size:
These birds are 31-36 cm long and weigh 420-550 g.

Habitat:
The black francolin is found in cultivated areas, such as arable land, irrigated fields and plantations, as well as in grasslands and scrublands. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 2.500 m.

Diet:
They feed mainly on the seeds of various grasses, weeds and agricultural crops, but also take
shoots, leaves, tubers, berries, figs, insects and their larvae, spiders, earthworms, and occasionally even amphibians and reptiles.

Breeding:
Black francolins are monogamous and the breeding season varies according to the range, but is associated to the rains. The nest is built by the female, consisting of a shallow scrape on the ground, concealed amongst the vegetation, in tall grasses or cultivated areas. It is lined with grasses, twigs and leaves. The female lays 7-14 eggs pale brown or greenish eggs with white spots, which she incubates alone for 18-21 days. The chicks leave the nest soon after hatching and are raised by both parents. Each pair produces 2 clutches per year.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as rare in some parts of its range, but common to widespread in other areas. The black francolin suffered heavy declines in some areas due to over-hunting, but hunting bans have halted this problem and the population in now suspected to be stable.

Red-throated ant-tanager

Habia fuscicauda

(Photo from Birders Without Borders)

Common name:
red-throated ant-tanager (en); tiê-de-garganta-vermelha (pt); habia à gorge rouge (fr); tangara hormiguera gorjirroja (es); rotkehl-ameisentangare (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Thraupidae

Range:
This species is found in Central America, from south-eastern Mexico to Panama and marginaly into northern Colombia.

Size:
These birds are 17-20 cm long. The males tend to be larger, weighing 37-47 g while the females weigh 32-40 g.

Habitat:
The red-throated ant-tanager is found in humid to semiarid, evergreen to semi-deciduous forests and forest edges. They also use swamp forests, second growths and scrublands. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.200 m.

Diet:
They are omnivorous, taking insects and other small arthropods, fruits and small lizards. They are known to et the fruits of Annonaceae, Melastomataceae, Rubiaceae and Moraceae.

Breeding:
These birds breed in March-June. They are socially monogamous, with other group members sometimes helping the breeding pair defending the nest and feeding the young. The female builds the nest alone, which consists of a bulky bowl made of dead leaves, pieces of bark and palm fronds, mosses and small twings. The nest is lined with plant fibres, spider webs and rhizomorphs, and often decorated with fungus. It is placed in a vine, bamboo clump or small tree, up to 4 m above the ground. The female lays 2-4 white eggs, which she incubates alone for 12-14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge about 10 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range and the global population is estimated at 0,5-5 million individuals. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Pygmy white-eye

Oculocincta squamifrons

Photo by Yeo Siew Teck (Oriental Bird Images)

Common name:
pygmy white-eye (en); olho-branco-anão (pt); zostérops pygmée (fr); anteojitos pigmeo (es); zwergbrillenvogel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passerformes
Family Zosteropidae

Range:
This species is endemic to the island of Borneo, being found in the central and northern parts of the islands, both in Indonesia and in Malaysia.

Size:
These birds are 10 cm long.

Habitat:
The pygmy white-eye is mostly found in mountain rainforests, also using high altitude tropical scrublands.

Diet:
They feed on small berries, fruits, seeds and insects, often taking part in mixed-species foraging flocks.

Breeding:
There is no available information regarding the reproduction of this species.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a relatively large breeding range and is described as locally quite common. The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and fragmentation.

Yellow rail

Coturnicops noveboracensis

Photo by Brian Small (Ministry of Natural Resources)

Common name:
yellow rail (en); franga-d'água-amarela (pt); râle jaune (fr); polluela amarillenta (es); gelbralle (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Gruiformes
Family Rallidae

Range:
This species breeds in central and western Canada, from eastern Alberta and the south-eastern Northwest Territories to southern Quebec and New Brunswick, and also in the north-eastern United States, from north-eastern Montana to Maine. They migrate south to winter along the coasts of the south-eastern United States, from North Carolina to Texas.

Size:
These birds are 15-19 cm long and have a wingspan of 28-32 cm. They weigh 40-70 g.

Habitat:
The yellow rail breeds in shallow marshes dominated by sedges and grasses, also using wet grasslands and hay fields. Outside the breeding season they also use arable land, rice fields and saltmarshes.

Diet:
They feed mainly on small freshwater snails, earthworms, crustaceans, spiders and both adult and larval insects. Outside the breeding season they also take the seeds of various sedges, rushes and grasses.

Breeding:
Yellow rails breed in April-July. They are believed to be monogamous and both sexes help build the nest, a crude scrape on the ground lined with fine sedges and grasses. It is usually hidden among vegetation, either near water or sometimes suspended over shallow water. There the female lays 4-10 eggs, which she incubates alone for 17-23 days. The chicks leave the nest soon after hatching, but are brooded and fed by the female and possibly also by the male for about 3 weeks. They start flying about 35 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range and the global population is estimated at 6.700-17.000 individuals. The overall population trend is stable, although some populations have unknown trendsand some small increases have been recorded.

Pale-billed flowerpecker

Dicaeum erythrorhynchos

Photo by Rakesh Dhareshwar (Birding in India)

Common name:
pale-billed flowerpecker (en); pica-flores-de-bico-vermelho (pt); dicée à bec rouge (fr); picaflores piquirrojo (es); lachsschnabel-mistelfresser (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Dicaeidae

Range:
This species is found in Nepal and most of India, with the exception of the north-westernmost parts of the country, and also in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and western Myanmar.

Size:
These tiny birds are 8 cm long and weigh 4-8 g.

Habitat:
The pale-billed flowerpecker is found in moist tropical forests, mangroves, plantations and also in rural gardens and within urban areas. They are highly dependent on the presence of Loranthus mistletoes.

Diet:
They feed on the berries and seeds of epiphytic plants such as Loranthus, Viscum and Muntingia. They also sip nectar from flowers.

Breeding:
Pale-billed flowerpeckers breed in February-June. The nest is a pear-shaped structure made of spider webs, plant fibres, moss and pieces of bark and rotten wood. It is suspended from the tip of a twig, 3-7 m above the ground. The female lays 1-3 white eggs. There is no information regarding the incubation and fledgling periods.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as common in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, not uncommon in Myanmar and locally abundant in India. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.