2007/07/08

National bird of Peru!!!


Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Cotingidae

Genus: Rupicola
Species: R. Peruviana

This is the national bird of Peru, called the Cock-of-the-rock, and it is a South American cotingid
bird.
It can be found in tropical and subtropical rain forests close to rocky areas, where they build their nests. Just like other cotingids it has complex court behaviour, performing impressive lek
displays.
The males are magnificent, not only because of their bright-orange or reddish colours, but because of the very prominent fan shaped crests they have, they are polygamous. They are wary animals and feed, basically, on fruits and nuts.
There are two different species of Cock-of-the-rocks, the
Andean Cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola peruviana, shown in this picture) and the Guianan Cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola rupicola), both species found only in the northern part of South America.
The Andean Cock-of-the-rock, Rupicola peruviana is a medium-sized, approx. 32cm (12½ in) long, passerine
with a large disk-like crest and scarlet or brilliant orange plumage. It has black tail and wings. The female is significantly darker and browner than the male and has a shorter crest.

References
Some facts retrieved from "
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cock-of-the-rock". BirdLife International (2004). Rupicola peruvianus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 29 October 2006.

1 comment:

Mel said...

Soon I'll post about national birds, as it is a curious topic that I believe some readers will enjoy.