Red-bellied grackle facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Red-bellied grackle |
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| Red-bellied grackle in Medellín, Colombia | |
| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Icteridae |
| Genus: | Hypopyrrhus Bonaparte, 1850 |
| Species: |
H. pyrohypogaster
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| Binomial name | |
| Hypopyrrhus pyrohypogaster (de Tarragon, L, 1847)
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The red-bellied grackle (Hypopyrrhus pyrohypogaster) is a special type of bird. It belongs to the Icteridae family, which includes other grackles and orioles. This bird is the only species in its group, called Hypopyrrhus.
This grackle lives only in Colombia, a country in South America. It prefers to live in warm, wet montane forests, which are forests found on mountains. Sadly, its home is shrinking because of habitat destruction. Because of this, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) says it is a "vulnerable species". This means it could become endangered if its habitat keeps disappearing.
What They Look Like
The male red-bellied grackle is about 30 centimeters (12 inches) long. The female is a bit smaller, around 27 centimeters (11 inches). Both male and female birds look very similar. They are mostly black, but they have a bright red belly and red feathers under their tail.
Their beak is shaped like a cone. Their eyes are either white or yellow. If you could hold one, you would see that the feathers on its head, neck, and throat are shiny. They have thin, narrow parts that make up the feather.
Where They Live
The red-bellied grackle is found only in Colombia. It lives in all three mountain ranges of the Andes there. You can find them at heights from about 800 to 2,400 meters (2,600 to 7,900 feet) above sea level.
Their natural home is the tropical forest. However, many trees are being cut down for wood or to make space for farms. Not much of the original forest is left where these birds live. Even so, these grackles can live in places that have been changed a bit. You might see them at the edges of forests, in tree farms, on cleared land, in bushes, over grassy fields, and next to roads.
How They Behave
Most of the time, except when they are raising their young, red-bellied grackles gather in small, noisy groups. They often stay high up in the treetops. Sometimes, they join other types of grackles or even Oropendolas in mixed groups.
These grackles eat both fruit and insects. They move around skillfully among the branches and leaves, sometimes even hanging upside down to find food.
They usually lay eggs and raise their young between March and August. Their nest is shaped like a cup. It is built loosely with sticks and dead leaves, often in the fork of a tree. The eggs are greenish-grey with dark brown and purple spots and streaks. Sometimes, a different bird called the giant cowbird (Molothrus oryzivorus) lays its eggs in the grackle's nest.
Their Conservation Status
The red-bellied grackle was once thought to be an "endangered" bird. But in 2012, experts changed its status to "vulnerable". This change happened because even though their forest homes are still shrinking, new groups of these birds have been found in places they weren't known to be before.
Today, there are an estimated 2,500 to 9,999 red-bellied grackles. They live across an area of about 3,700 square kilometers (1,400 square miles). Sadly, the number of these birds is believed to be going down. This is because the forests where they live continue to disappear and become broken up into smaller pieces.
See also
In Spanish: Cacique candela para niños
 | James Van Der Zee |
 | Alma Thomas |
 | Ellis Wilson |
 | Margaret Taylor-Burroughs |
