English             -               Least Pygmy-Owl

Portuguese     -               Caburé Miudinho

Latin                 -               Glaucidium minutissimum

Being able to Photograph the Least Pygmy-Owl during the day was a surprise for me. When I first saw it, it was rolled up in a wee ball and I thought it was a nest of some kind until the “nest” started moving and I realised it was a wee Owl. The photos of the Least Pygmy-Owl were taken on 2 different days but in the same tree, under (obviously) different lighting conditions and they were taken up at the lodge at REGUA. (Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu) It didn’t seem to bothered with my presence and i was able to observe it for quite a while. Always thought most owls were nocturnal but after doing a bit of reading, the Least Pygmy-Owl is most active at dusk and dawn and I did photograph it “early-ish” in the morning.

* The Least Pygmy-Owl is also known as the East Brazilian pygmy owl.

* It is one of the smallest South American owls.

* It has a length of 15 cm and weighs around 55 gr.

* Females are heavier than males.

* The Least Pygmy-Owl song consists of series of double or triple low-pitched hoots. (actual sound recorded at REGUA)

* It is almost endemic to Brazil but is found in small parts of Paraguay and northern Argentina.

* It inhabits tropical, humid evergreen forest canopy and forest edge, from sea-level to at least 1000 m.

* The Least Pygmy-Owl preys on insects, lizards and small birds. 

* The breeding habits of the Least Pygmy Owl are little known. Likely nests in abandoned woodpeckers nests where it lays up to 3 eggs.

* Not globally threatened. The Least Pygmy-Owl has a reasonably large range. There are no numbers on population trends but populations are thought to be stable therefore the Least Pygmy-Owl is classified as a species ”of least concern”.

English              -               Maguari Stork

Portuguese      -               Maguari

Latin                  -               Ciconia maguari

The Maguari Stork is another large bird that I photographed in the Pantanal. Unfortunately the above photos are of the only Maguari Stork I saw in the Pantanal and it was quite along way away so I’ve had to crop the photos a bit. It seemed very wary of me though because even though I was quite along way away from it, it still kept walking away and eventually ducked and hid behind a bush. We came across the Maguari Stork as we were driving down the dirt road MS184 and I noticed a big white bird in a field. The bird in the back ground in photo No. 2 is a Buff-necked Ibis (future blog) which is also a big bird but it is dwarfed by the Maguari Stork.

* Large bird with a  Length of 102 cm, height of 85 cm, wingspan of up to 180 cm and weighs around 4.2 kgs.

* Like other Ciconiidae species, bill-clattering is more often heard than true calls. However, it can produce some mechanical like sounds. 

* The Maguari Stork is a South American species found from Venezuela to down to Argentina. East of the Andes.

* The Maguari Stork habitats freshwater wetland, swamps, flooded pastures, reed-beds and rice fields, savannah ponds, cultivated fields and grassy areas.   

* They feed mainly on aquatic life like insects, frogs, tadpoles, fish (eels), crustaceans, aquatic rodents and reptiles.

* The female lays 3-4 eggs which are incubated for 29 to 32 days. The nestlings fledge 60-72 days after hatching.

* The Maguari Stork is not currently under threat in spite of some declines in parts of its range in recent years. Agriculture expansion involving intensive use of pesticides, and direct exploitation (young birds are taken at nest for consumption) are important threats. But the species is still widespread and abundant especially in Argentina. Therefore the Maguari Stork is classified as a species ”of Least concern”.

English           -            Buff-bellied Puffbird

Portuguese    -            Macuru de barriga Castanha

Latin                -           Notharchus Swainsoni

This cool looking wee bird was photographed at a place called Waldenor which is an excursion you can take if you stay at REGUA. (Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu) Waldenor is about a half hours drive from REGUA, then there is about a two hour return walk through forest, in which numerous bird species can be seen. On this occasion and after stopping for a water stop we spotted the Buff-bellied Puffbird sitting on a branch, quite high in a tree. There was a pair of them and we were able to observe them for quite along time until they had somewhere else to go and they flew away. The day was a bright sunny day and managed to get some good photos even though they were quite high up in a tree.

* The Buff-bellied Puffbird is a smallish type of bird with a length of 24 cm and weighs around 76g.

* Its call sound like a descending sequence of whistles, varying in rhythm.

*  It is found in Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay. 

* Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and heavily degraded former forest. 

* Their diet mainly consists of insects and small vertebrates.

* The female lays three to four white eggs which are incubated for 14-21 days .The nestlings fledge after 30 days.

* The Buff-bellied Puffbird is not globally threatened. In Brazil, its range recently shown to be wider than thought, and with a large range and stable numbers, the Buff-bellied Puffbird is classified as a species ”of least concern”.