South America  "The Bird Continent"
a land of over 3000 of the worlds 9000 species
 the Bird Zoo home page


   When a few square miles of habitat, can harbor over 300 species of birds, as in the case of many areas of South America, any representation of species diversity by a zoo, is going to seem trivial, insignificant cursory, or token at best. Like wise, any collection of study skins, (those cotton stuffed bird on a pop sickle stick beak straight forward, sardines in a can, wooden draw assemblages) no matter how large, or important to research and scientific understanding, falls dramatically short of showing what such creatures are, of their essence in the flesh, in the wilds on a perch, in pursuit, or as prey.

So what is cool or amazing about the birds of this continent, of the inhabitants of the paramo, the slopes of the magnificent Andes, of the lush forest of lowland Amazonia? Volumes have been written, but most will never be known.

My introduction to neotropical birds, would start with a splash of color and marvel, a catch to lure you in would include manakins! No, no, not the store window clothing modeling dummies, but of the feathered jewels, dancing in the depths of forest, competing with every ounce of their being for the attention of a female. The males will have a territory or court picked out. Their court will be adjoined closely by the courts of other males, with the best of the best holding center court, and the youngest more inexperienced males on the fringe. These display sites or courts together form the lek. Males will spend much of their days within earshot of the lek. When a female nears the lek will explode with activity as males dart to their perches, and perform with all they have. There are many variations on this theme, bizarre, peculiar, and magnificently specialized behaviors by the family of cotingidae.

 

Several manakins in genus pipra are small black birds with short rounded wings and strikingly colored head patterns. Their leks are located in the understory near the ground or a few meters up. The Golden-headed Manakins will have several available open perches as the one illustrated here upon which the male bird will perform a series of ritualized rapid movements, or a display dance for the attentions of a female. To first draw a female closer, such manakins will dart with rapid flights from perch to perch, uttering sharp calls often accompanied by wing noises.

 

Many manakins and contigas are frugivores (fruit eaters). Its thought that because these birds have a fairly constant, dependable supply of food, they are able to spend a greater percentage of their days and lives competing for mates. Most species of birds, particularly perching birds, use voice as one means of identifying there kind, to announce their fitness, and to defend their territory. Song is then both a tool in advertising to a mate, and keeping others out of the area you need to provide food for yourself and your nestlings. Many advertising songs, are accompanied by some physical display as well. And in these physical displays, these visual cues, the manakins and cotingas have gone down a very long and complicated road.   Link to the Costa Rican Birds Manakins Page

 

Specialist of all shapes and sizes would be the norm in a region with such a high species diversity, from fish-eating bats, marsupial rats, and lekking frugivores.

One of the more flamboyant cotingas if in plumage alone would be the cock of the rock. There are two similar species in S. A. These are the Andean Cock-of-the-Rock and the more lowland form photographed here, the Guianan Cock-of-the- Rock

Displaying in the understory these birds have an elaborate dance and loud, raucous far-carrying calls.

Accounts of manakin and contingid behavior and further exploration of the processes that resulted in these behaviors, can be gained through the reading of a book by David Snow---The Web of Adaptation. Be forewarned,(especially those of you in secluded parts of Kansas and perhaps folks in Texas trying to dictate what is in our textbooks), there is speak of that adaptation and evolution theory. The concept that changes occur over time, that the fittest will out live the weak, voodoo about how dinosaurs roamed the earth--as well as other evils that the discovery channel might bestowed upon us. Actually, no dinosaurs, just the feathered descendents living in S. A. rainforest, and how it might be that they act so.