Rufous-tailed Jacamar

Overview

The rufous-tailed jacamar (Galbula ruficauda) is a near passerine bird that breeds in the tropical New World. It inhabits regions ranging from southern Mexico and Central America through to southern Brazil and Ecuador.

Identification

• Metallic green above with mainly orange underparts, including the undertail, separated by a green breast band.
• Typically 25 cm long with a 5 cm long black bill, though the subspecies G. r. brevirostris has a shorter bill.
• Males possess a white throat, while females have a buff throat and tend to have paler underparts.
• The call is described as a sharp 'pee-op', and the song is a high, thin 'peeo-pee-peeo-pee-pe-pe' ending in a trill.

Habitat

This species is a resident breeder found in dry or moist woodlands and scrub. Its range extends across the tropical New World, from southern Mexico and Central America as far south as southern Brazil and Ecuador.

Diet

An insectivore that hunts from a perch with its bill tilted up, flying out to catch prey such as flies, beetles, bees, dragonflies, butterflies, and the social wasp Agelaia vicina. The bird distinguishes between edible and unpalatable butterflies mainly according to their body shape.

Did you know?

The rufous-tailed jacamar lays two to four rufous-spotted white eggs in a burrow located in a bank or termite mound.