English - Red-fan Parrot
Portuguese - Anacã
Latin - Deroptyus accipitrinus
The Red-fan Parrot, also known as the hawk-headed parrot, is an unusual New World parrot hailing from the Amazon Rainforest. It is the only member of the genus Deroptyus.
The Red-fan Parrot is known for its brilliantly coloured plumage, and is named for the blue and red feathers around their head that are raised when they become excited or when it feels threatened.
Both the male and the female have a white fore crown and a brown throat with white streaks. The base of their neck is red edged with blue. The Red-fan Parrots breast and belly are red and edged with electric blue. Their back, wings and tail are green. The underside of their tale is black. Some of the adults have a red spot under the base of their tail, and it is not related to gender.
The juveniles have brown eyes and a lighter colour beak. The adults have yellow eyes, a grey-black beak and grey legs. They can get to 35 cm in length and weigh up to 275 grams. The Red-fan Parrots can live up to 40 years. Red-fan Parrots can produce many different sounds ranging from a nasal high-pitched cry (heya, heya) which is used while courting and during normal behaviour. They can also hiss, growl and scream very persistently.
Red-fan Parrots are endemic to the Amazon Basin in South America. They are generally found in undisturbed, dense rainforest near large rivers and in mountain foothills, where they remain throughout the year. living in small groups in the treetops.
Red-fan Parrots are primarily fruit-eating birds, although they eat a fair amount of vegetable matter as well. In the wild, they prefer to eat the pulp from ripe and unripe fruits, dropping the uneaten seeds in the process. They play an important role in its habitat by helping to propagate new forest. They also eat new terminal buds and shoots from specific tree species.
The breeding season for the Red-fan Parrots is December and January. The female lays her eggs in an abandoned nest hole or in a dead tree trunk. The female lays between one to three medium-sized white eggs per year. The male cares for the female while she incubates the eggs. The chicks hatch after being incubated for 26 days, and are blind and helpless. The chicks fledge after 10 to 12 weeks and are on their own after that.
The Red-fan Parrot is classed as a Species “of least concern” but numbers are declining in the wild. This is due to deforestation in it’s range and the threat from the wild-bird trade. Red-fan Parrots have a high mortality rate when kept as a captive bird.
Photos of the Red-fan Parrot were taken at Parque das Aves - Foz Do Iguacu - Parana.
English - Common Gallinule
Portuguese - Frango-d’água-comum
Latin - Gallinula galeata
The Common Gallinule (or Common Moorhen) is a Medium size, chicken-like marsh bird in the Rail family with an almost worldwide distribution.
The Common Gallinule is a ground-dwelling water bird and is among the world’s most widespread bird species, being found in many wetlands across the globe. It is easily recognised by its vivid red shield and short, yellow bill, which sits in stark contrast to the dark-coloured plumage. From a distance the plump body appears bold black, but upon closer inspection it’s a more attractive olive-brown on the back, head and on its short wings, and grey on the underparts. The short legs and its long toes are bright yellow-green to yellow, and a white trim around the underside of its short tail is visible when the bird flicks its tail upwards. The male and female adult birds are similar in appearance. The juvenile birds have a brown to grey crown, neck and back, while the underparts are paler than those of the adult bird, with a whitish throat and belly. The Common Gallinule is an extremely vocal bird capable of producing a number of bizarre, distinctive sounds, including a variety of clucks and chattering calls. They can get up to 36 cm in length and weigh up to 450 gram.
The Common Gallinule is plentiful in North, Central, and South America as well as Eurasia, Africa, and Indonesia: These birds can be found in freshwater ponds, marshes, parks, and other public places where it can hide and feed among the reeds. It is less common in brackish or saltwater areas. Some Common Gallinule have been known to fly great distances, especially those in northern areas, which migrate south during the winter to find warmer temperatures.
The Common Gallinule is an omnivorous species which feeds while walking on plants or while floating on the water. It swims across water, scooping up floating seeds and other materials from plants floating on the surface. It also dives to gather the seeds, leaves and roots of aquatic plants. On land it walks with a high-stepping gait and pecks at the ground like a chicken. It also eats algae, small fish, tadpoles, insects, berries, grass, snails, insects and worms.
To find a mate the male Common Gallinule chases a female around on land, when excepted by the female they both stop, bow deeply and preen each other’s feathers. Other displays involve lowering head and raising tail, exposing white patches under the tail. The nest site is in marsh over shallow water, sometimes on the ground or in shrubs near water. The nest which is built by both sexes is a solidly constructed platform (or wide, shallow cup) of cattails, bulrushes, reeds; often has a ramp of similar material leading down to water. Similar platforms built nearby, may be used for resting or brooding. The female lays between 5-13 buff, irregularly spotted brown eggs. The eggs are incubated by both sexes for up to 22 days. The young can swim well shortly after hatching. The young are fed by both parents or sometimes by older siblings from earlier broods. Nestlings fledge after 6 weeks from hatching. Common Gallinule can have up to 2 broods per year, rarely 3.
The Common Gallinule has declined over parts of it’s range due to the loss of its natural habitat. It is still though a widespread species and may be locally common where good marsh habitat is found. Therefore it is considered a species “of Least Concern”.
Photos of the Common Gallinule were taken at Parque Barigui - Curitiba - Parana. Photo # 3 is of a Juvenile Common Gallinule.
English - Green Iguana
Portuguese - Iguana Verde
Latin - Iguana iguana
The Green Iguana is a fairly large lizard and is a well known reptiles due to its popularity in zoos and with private reptile keepers.
Although called Green Iguanas, these animals are actually variable in colour. The adults become more uniform in colour with age, whereas the young may appear more blotchy or banded between green and brown. Colour of an individual may also vary based upon its mood, temperature, health,social status and range. Such colour alteration may aide these animals in thermoregulation. Active dominant Green Iguanas usually have a darker colour than lower-ranked Green Iguanas living the same environment. Most colour variation seen in this species is exhibited by males, and may be attributed in part to sex steroids. Six to eight weeks prior to and during courtship, males may acquire a bright orange or gold hue, although coloration is still related to dominance status. Mature females, for the most part, retain their green colouring.
Other distinguishing features of this species include a pendulous dewlap under the throat, a dorsal crest made up of dermal spines that run from the mid neck to the tail base, and a long tapering tail. The dewlap is more developed in adult males than females. Extensions of the hyoid bones stiffen and support the leading edge of this structure, which is used in territorial defence or when the animal is frightened. This fleshy structure also serves in heat absorption and dissipation when it is extended.
The laterally situated eyes are protected mainly by a immovable eyelid and freely mobile lower eyelid. On the dorsal midline of the skull behind the eyes is a parietal eye. This sense organ, although not a true “eye,” serves as a meter for solar energy, and aids in the maturation of sex organs, thyroid gland, and endocrine glands. The visual effect of this “eye” is mostly limited to the detection of predatory shadows from above.
The scales or plates on the head are larger and more irregular than the scales on the rest of the body. Below the tympanum there is a large rounded scale called the subtympanic plate. They can reach up to 2 metres in length and weigh up to 5 kgs. They can live up to 20 years.
Green Iguanas, occur throughout Central and South America, from Mexico, south to the Tropic of Capricorn in Paraguay and southeast Brazil. This large lizard also inhabits many islands throughout the Caribbean region and the coastal eastern Pacific, and has been introduced into southern Florida and Hawaii. Green Iguanas most commonly inhabit tropical forest close to water, from sea level up to an altitude of 1,000 metres, although they avoid areas of deep forest where the sun cannot reach the ground. They are arboreal lizards that live high in trees. Juveniles establish areas lower in the canopies while older mature iguanas reside higher up. This tree dwelling habit allows them to bask in the sun, rarely coming down except when females dig burrows to lay eggs. They can also adjust well to a more open area. No matter where they inhabit, they prefer to have water around as they are excellent swimmers and will dive beneath the water to avoid predators.
Green Iguanas are primarily herbivorous so they mainly eat leaves, flowers, and some fruits. They require a high amount of dietary protein in their first two to three years for adequately fast growth. During this time period, young iguanas may consume insects and spiders.
Most Green Iguanas reach sexual maturity between three and four years of age. Green Iguanas tend to breed in the dry season, ensuring the young hatch in the wet season when food is more readily available.
Mating appears to be polygynandrous. Courtship occurs within a defined territory where more than one female may be present. Conflicts between males are not uncommon. Courtship behaviour of males includes head bobbing, extending and retraction of the dewlap, and nuzzling or biting a female’s neck. Dominant males may also mark rocks, branches, and females with a waxy pheromone-containing substance secreted from their femoral pores.
During mating, the male approaches the female and climbs on her back, straddling her. To restrain his mate, he grips her shoulder skin with his teeth, sometimes causing wounds. Female iguanas can save sperm for several years, allowing them to fertilise eggs at a much later date. Green Iguanas are oviparous. Females lay their eggs about 65 days after mating. Eggs are deposited into the nest which is a burrow in the ground. The nests can be from 45 cm to more than a meter deep, and may be shared with other females if nesting areas are limited. Egg Incubation is from 90 to 120 days. Temperature has to range from 29.4 to 32.7 degrees celsius in the nest for the eggs to survive. The hatchlings pip the egg open using a special egg tooth, called the caruncle, that falls off shortly after hatching. Absorbed yolk provides most of the nourishment for the first week or two of an Green Iguanas life. The young Green Iguanas are independent from birth. The females give no parental protection after egg laying, apart from defending the burrow during excavation.
Green Iguana’s are not considered a conservation risk at the moment. although throughout Latin America, the Green Iguana is hunted for its beautiful, commercially-valuable skin, prized flesh, and eggs. It is one of the neotropical reptiles most frequently hunted for food, to feed families or to sell, and are either shot or captured by dogs. They are also captured live; newly-hatched iguanas may be exported for the pet trade, while captured female Green Iguanas may be cut open to extract the eggs and then released. These females subsequently die due to their wounds. This level of exploitation, in combination with deforestation, has decimated populations in some parts of its range.
Photos of the Green Iguana were taken at Parque das Aves - Foz do Iguacu - Parana.
