Broad-billed motmot (Electron platyrhynchum) is found from Honduras in Central America south to the interior of Brazil south of the Amazon. This 12 inch motmot has an orange head, neck, and upper breast. The throat shows a small pale area. The overall color is green with a blue-green lower breast. The long tail is racket tipped. The racket area is blue with an expanded black tip.

(There is an unusual mimicry pair involved between two species in different genera. This species is easily confused except for size differences with the larger rufous motmot, Baryphthengus martii.)

There are 6 subspecies. The nominate subspecies is found from western Colombia south to western Ecuador. The subspecies minus is found from Honduras south to central Colombia. The subspecies colombianum is found in the lowlands of northern Colombia. The subspecies pyrrholaemum is found from eastern Colombia south to eastern Ecuador, Peru, and as far south as northern Bolivia. The subspecies orienticola is found in the western Amazon region of Brazil. The subspecies chlorophrys is found in the interior of Brazil generally south of the Amazon.

This species is considered common in the Caribbean lowlands of Costa Rica.

Motmot Family (Family Momotidae) is found only in the New World tropics. There are eight species in this family.

Hornbills, rollers, and kingfishers (Order Coraciformes) are characterized by having their three front toes joined for a portion of their length. There are seven families in this order.

Aves contains about 8,650 different species of living birds known to science. Each year about one new species is discovered in some remote rain forest or remote island. In addition, scientists have been raising many subspecies to full species status which may raise the species count to 10,000. Birdlife recognizes 10,027 species as of 2011.

However, each year about one species goes extinct. The rate of extinction is increasing, and the rate of new discovery is decreasing, so that the number of bird species will soon begin to decline rapidly. Although different taxonomists would organize the birds differently, there are approximately twenty-seven orders of birds. These orders are broken down into about one hundred and fifty-five different families.

Recent research of the genetic structure of some of the shore birds and owls would indicate that the present organization of orders and families should have some modification.

The birds are a worldwide group of animals that are characterized by having the front limbs modified into wings that are used for flying. Perhaps the most unique feature of the birds is the feathers. These feathers are made up of a central support called a quill and a series of small filaments that are hooked together as barbs.

For many years it was believed that Archaeopteryx discovered in Bavaria was the oldest bird from about 150 million years ago. However, in l986, Sankar Chattterjee, a Texas paleontologist, reportedly discovered a bird in the genus Protoavis that lived about 225 million years ago.

When this project was begun in 1978, we used Austin & Singer for bird taxonomy. Since then, we have adopted many changes, but have kept some older concepts that are still found widely in the literature. Recently, we have used Clements and Howard & Moore. Very recently, we have used Monroe and Sibley for the higher taxonomy of the perching birds.

Backboned Animals (Phylum Chordata) are the most advanced group of animals on earth. These animals are characterized by having a spinal cord or backbone. Most members have a clearly defined brain that controls the organism through a spinal cord. Fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals are in this phylum.

Currently, some taxonomists believe that the fish should be divided into two groups (sharks and regular fishes) and that there are some other primitive groups in the phylum such as hagfish or lampreys.

Animal Kingdom contains numerous organisms that feed on other animals or plants. Included in the animal kingdom are the lower marine invertebrates such as sponges and corals, the jointed legged animals such as insects and spiders, and the backboned animals such as fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

NEW SEARCH