Black-streaked puffbird facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Black-streaked puffbird |
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Malacoptila
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| Species: |
fulvogularis
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The black-streaked puffbird (Malacoptila fulvogularis) is a fascinating bird that belongs to the Bucconidae family. This family includes puffbirds, nunlets, and nunbirds. You can find this specific puffbird in several South American countries: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
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About the Black-streaked Puffbird
The black-streaked puffbird is about 19 to 22 centimeters (7.5 to 8.7 inches) long. It weighs around 65 grams (2.3 ounces), which is about the same as a tennis ball.
What Does This Bird Look Like?
This bird has a dark, blackish head with thin white stripes. It also has a small white spot right in front of its eye. Its upper body is dark brown with thin white streaks on its shoulders. These streaks turn into buffy (light yellowish-brown) triangles on its back.
Its wings are brown, and its tail is a solid brown color. The bird's throat and upper chest are a warm, orange-brown color, called ochraceous. The lower chest and upper belly have cool black and white stripes. The very center of its belly is a plain, dull white. The black-streaked puffbird has a black beak, bright red eyes with a white ring around them, and dark feet.
Where Do Black-streaked Puffbirds Live?
Black-streaked puffbirds live on the eastern side of the Andes mountains. Their home stretches from Colombia, through Ecuador and Peru, all the way into northwestern Bolivia.
They like to live in the lower parts of different types of forests. This includes humid primary forests (forests that haven't been disturbed much) and montane forests (forests found in mountains). They can also be found in more open woodlands. In Bolivia, they even live in dry and semi-deciduous forests, which lose some of their leaves in certain seasons. These birds can be found at elevations from about 500 meters (1,600 feet) up to 2,300 meters (7,500 feet) above sea level.
How Black-streaked Puffbirds Behave
What Do They Eat?
The black-streaked puffbird is a hunter! It usually waits on a branch in the lower or middle parts of the forest. From there, it quickly flies out to catch its prey, which are mostly insects and other small creatures without backbones. It grabs them from branches and leaves. Sometimes, these puffbirds will follow groups of army ants, which stir up insects as they move. They also sometimes join mixed-species foraging flocks, which are groups of different bird species hunting together.
Do They Sing?
Yes, they do! The black-streaked puffbird's song is a very high-pitched whistle. It goes upwards in sound and lasts for less than four seconds.
How Do They Raise Their Young?
Scientists don't have much information about how the black-streaked puffbird breeds or raises its chicks. This means there's still a lot to learn about their family life!
Is the Black-streaked Puffbird Safe?
The IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) has listed the black-streaked puffbird as a species of "Least Concern." This means they are not currently in danger of disappearing. However, scientists don't know exactly how many of these birds there are, and they believe the population might be slowly decreasing. Luckily, no specific big threats have been found for them. They are considered rare in some areas but fairly common in others.
