English            -             Amazonian Motmot

Portuguese    -              Udu-de-coroa-azul

Latin               -               Momotus momota

Such an ugly name for such a pretty bird. (well, that’s what I think) I photographed the Amazonian Motmot on a walking track on the way to Buraco das Araras, near the town of Jardim, Mato Grosso do Sul. On the track we saw 2 Amazonian Motmot. The first one we saw (photo No. 1) was a wee bit of a challenge to photograph as there was quite a bit of foliage in the way and it didn’t matter what angle I tried to get to, the camera wanted to focus on all the leaves and branches in front of the Amazonian Motmot but eventually managed to focus on it and take a shot before it flew away. The second Amazonian Motmot (photo No. 2) was more straight forward. We were walking further down the track and this one was just chilling out sitting on a fence post. it didn’t seem too concerned with our presence. As we were walking through a lightly forested area both photos were taken in the shade so the colours of the Amazonian Motmot are a bit flat.

* The Amazonian Motmot has a length of up to 43 cm and can weigh up to 160g.

* Its double-noted hooting call is a familiar sound in many areas of the Neotropics.

* Occurs in South America east of the Andes. The distribution extends from eastern Colombia across southern Venezuela,south to northwestern Argentina, and east across most of Brazil.

* The Amazonian Motmot is omnivorous. Has been recorded eating small reptiles, insects and fruit.

* The Amazonian Motmot has an extremely wide range, large population size and a stable population trend. It does not have an IUCN Red List conservation rating but is regarded as a species “of least concern”. The logging of the rain forests in South America has certainly diminished its habitat. Nonetheless the Amazonian Motmot is relatively tolerant of habitat disturbance, and is not limited to the interior of undisturbed tropical rainforest.