English             -              Slaty-breasted Wood Rail

Portuguese     -               Saracura-do-mato

Latin                -               Aramides Saracura                          

The Slaty-breasted Wood Rail is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. The Slaty-breasted Wood Rail is a rarely seen and shy species that is infrequently observed.

An adult Slaty-breasted Wood Rail can reach 37cm in length and weighs around 550 grams. The crown and the sides of the head are a grey / slightly brownish colour. The nape of the neck is also a brownish colour that gradually becomes olive-brown upon reaching the mantle of the bird. The wings are olive-green in colour. Chin and throat are whitish. The neck, sides, chest and belly show a beautiful blue-grey coloration. The eyes are red with a black pupil. The beak is a Yellowish-green colour with a blueish base. The feet are a reddish-pink colour.           

The Slaty-breasted Wood-Rail is found in south-east Brazil and neighbouring parts of Paraguay and Argentina. It is found in forest and woods where there are marshy and boggy areas.

Little is known about the Slaty-breasted Wood-Rail diet but is thought to consist of worms, molluscs, crustaceans, insects and their larvae, spiders, and the seeds and shoots of marsh plants.

Little is also known about the reproductive habits of the Slaty-breasted Wood-Rail but when the nestlings hatch they are almost black / dark browns including their eyes, beak and legs.

Despite the fact that the population trend appears to be decreasing due to its diminishing habitat the decrease is not believed to be at a rate fast enough to reach the thresholds of Vulnerable. Therefore the Slaty-breasted Wood-Rail classified as a species “of Least Concern”. 

Photos of the Slaty-breasted Wood-Rail were taken at Parque das Aves - Foz do Iguacu - Parana

English            -              Maned Sloth

Portuguese    -              Preguiça-de-Coleira

Latin               -               Bradypus Torquatus

The Maned Three-toed Sloth is one of the rarest of the six sloth species. Their name refers to its black mane of hairs that runs down the back of its neck and over the shoulders.                     

The Maned Three-toed Sloth (as well as other sloth species) is well known for its incredible slow movements. Its head and body length is approx. 700mm and  can weigh approx. 6kg. They are the largest of the sloth species. Their coats are a greyish-brown colour, although it frequently has a greenish tinge because of the algae that live in the hair. This algal growth provides the Maned Three-toed Sloth with excellent camouflage, enabling it to blend in perfectly with its surroundings. The fur is long and coarse, and grows in the opposite direction to that of most other mammals, so the hairs point downwards when the animal is hanging upside-down from a branch. The head is small and round, with a flat face and small ears hidden in the fur. They have short bodies, long limbs and stumpy tails. Three-toed sloths are so-called because they have three digits on each limb (two-toed sloths have three digits on their hind limbs, but only two on their forelimbs). Each digit ends in a long curved claw, which the sloth uses to hook around branches. Maned Three-toed Sloths have eight or nine vertebrae, whereas most other mammals have only seven. This allows the Maned Three-toed Sloths greater flexibility in head movement, enabling the them to turn its neck 270 degrees. Maned sloths are solitary diurnal animals.       

The Maned Three-toed Sloth  is only found in Brazil and is restricted to the remaining fragments of the Atlantic rainforest on the Brazilian east coast. It inhabits tropical evergreen forests at low elevations, especially those with a continuous tree canopy. The Maned Three-toed Sloth spend practically its entire life in trees, either hanging beneath branches or sitting in a fork of branches. They descend to the ground about once or twice a week to urinate and defecate, and on occasion to move from one tree to another.     

The mating system of Maned Three-toed Sloth indicates that males compete with one another for access to the females, suggesting that female sloths choose larger and more powerful males with which to mate. Mane size and darkness of male sloths may reflect health and vitality. Males may mate with multiple females. Maned three-toed sloths have been observed copulating while locked in a tight embrace high in the canopy of the forest. The Maned Three-toed Sloths is seasonal breeders, with breeding occurring between September and November. Reproduction may occur at this time of year so that gestation and lactation can occur when temperatures are more favourable and food items are more abundant. Females produce a single young after a gestation period of approximately 6 months. Young Maned Three-toed Sloths weigh approximately 300 grams at birth and cling to the mother for the first 6 to 9 months of its life. Within two weeks of birth, infants begin to ingest leaves. Lactation bears a high cost to the mother of newborns and the early development of folivore in infants may be an adaptation to lessen the cost of lactation. Although leaves are a portion of their diet, newborns suckle until they reach 4 months of age. Infants will remain with the mother for 8 to 11 months. Maned Three-toed Sloths achieve adult size within 1 to 3 years of birth.              

The natural threat to the Maned Three-toed Sloth are avian predators, such as the harpy eagle and rainforest cats. But the real threat to the Maned Three-toed Sloth is the loss of its natural habitat which is threatened by logging, charcoal production, urbanisation, industrialisation and clearance for plantations and cattle pasture. Today, the Atlantic Forest is reduced to less than 5% of its original extent and the area of the Atlantic rainforest, where the maned three-toed sloth lives, has the highest human population in Brazil. The Maned Three-toed Sloth was previously hunted for its meat, and even though it is now protected by law, its numbers have been dramatically reduced and have not recovered. There have also been reports of the Maned Three-toed Sloth being found in tourist areas where people pay to have their photograph taken with it, indicating that hunting is not totally under control. The Maned Three-toed Sloth is a threatened species and is classed as vulnerable on the IUCN red list of endangered species.        

All photos of the Maned Three-toed Sloth were taken on Morro Do Moreno (Moreno Hill) - Vila Velha - Espirito Santo. The photos are of 2 out of the population of around 5 Maned Three-toed Sloths that live on Morro do Moreno.

English             -              Hooded Siskin

Portuguese     -               Pintassilgo

Latin                -               Spinus magellanicus

The Hooded Siskin is a small type of finch, native to South America. They are part of the Neotropical Siskin family. It is the most widespread Siskin in South America.

The Hooded Siskin is 10 to 14 cm in length and can weigh up to 15 grams. The male is largely olive above and yellow below with a black head. It has a narrow yellow collar and a yellow rump. The tail is black with yellow sides to the base and the wings are black with a broad yellow band. Females are duller with a green-brown head, yellow-green breast and sides and a whitish belly. The twittering song may be uttered from a perch or in flight. It is varied and fast, and may contain imitations of other birds. 

It is found from central Argentina north to central Brazil. In the Andean region it occurs from north-west Argentina and northern Chile north to central Colombia. There are isolated populations in south-east Venezuela, Guyana and in the Brazilian state of Roraima. The Hooded Siskin habitat include woodland areas, savannahs, scrubland, farmland, parks and gardens, from sea-level up to about 5,000 meters. 

The Hooded Siskin feeds primarily on seeds, buds and leaves from several plant species such as thistles and Lactuca. It will occasionally takes insects for protein, to feed the new chicks to assist with their rapid growth.

During the breeding season, the Hooded Siskin defends a small area around their nest. Usually, they spend little time on territorial defence. Pair-bonds are maintained by songs. Both mates stay together with the male accompanying the female where ever she goes especially when the female is building the nest.  The nest is a small cup made with fine plant material. The female lays 2-3 eggs and incubates them for 12-13 days. Usually, the male provides the female with food during the incubation and post hatching period and she in turn feeds the newly hatched chicks regurgitated food directly into their open mouths.
The young birds fledge two weeks after hatching but still depend on their parents for food for a few more days.

The Hooded Siskin is fairly common and has a large range, but it is often trapped for the pet-trade. Some declines have been noticed in some areas of its range but currently the Hooded Siskin is classified as a species ”of least concern”.

Photos of the Hooded Siskin were taken at Parque das Aves - Foz do Iguacu - Parana