The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-08-26
FOOL BIRDS.
Interesting Family Of Bipeds In South
America.

Interesting Family of Bipeds In South
| America.
Tunnels-The Enemy of Insects ana
Beetles
Among the many groups of interesting
birds that are confined in the tropics Oh
America, none are more worthy of attention
or more amusingIy attractive than the mot
mots babas, or "fool BIDS as they are
known to the Spanish Americans, writes
Geo. X. Cherrie, Assistant Curator OF
ornithology in the Chicago Museum, to the
Times Herald of that city.
The motmots (momotidae) are a small
group of birds of only eighteen species thai
range in their habitat from Northern Mexico
to extreme southern Brazil. They are some
what kingfisher-like, except that the tail Is
much longer.than the.wings, and instead Of
being square it is much graduated, that is,
the middle pair of feathers are much longer
than their fellows, and each succeeding
/ pair is shorter than the ones that precede.
The feet have three toes in front and one
behind, as is normal ;but the outer and mid
die toes in front are united for .the greater
part of their length. The bill Is large and
strong, and in the different species quite
variable in shape. In some it is nearly
round, and in others considerably depressed,
or fattened, but all agree in having the cut
ting edges serrate.
The predominant colors are green and
rusty (all are green above), and with blush
or beryl green ornamental plumes about
the head. All the motmots are marked in
the upper.breastswithfap peculiar little tuft
of elongated blackish feathers, usually
| edged with some shade of brilliant hue.
But a popularity most distinctive of the true
motmots is the racket-shaped centre pair OF
tail feathers, the web of the feathers having
| been stripped from the shaft for varying
distance in the several species. Three
species admitted as members of the family,
moreover, are not marked.
| The motmots are solitary or may live in
pairs. From my own observations 1 am in
| clined to think that they are only found In
| pairs at or short time before the mating
season. secluded and shady recesses In the
dark tropical forest are chosen preference,
usually near stream of water. For long
| intervals at time these birds will sit in the
same position..with not the slightest move
ment to the body, except to swing the long
spatula- tipped tail back forth from side to
side like pendulum. Usually they occupy
low branches, seldom being seen more than
/ twenty feet from the ground
h THE MoTMoTs ARE soNGLEss,
having only single "hoo" like note, which
is uttered as in reverie and to keep time to
| the swinging of the pendulum movements
| of the tail.
| Insects, small reptiles and fruits form the
| motmot's regular diet. The larger insects
| and reptiles, after being captured, ARE struck
violently first on one side and then on the
other, while being held in the birds strong
bill. With the small reptiles the bones are
broken and the body almost rendered pulp
before it is swallowed, and.in similar way
when a large beetle happens to be the VIC
tim, it is pounded about until the legs and
hard chitenous wings are broken away.
Their prey is taken either on the wing or
seized after alighting. Locusts and katydids
and their relatives are taken on the wing
and then carried to some firm perch to be
thrashed about before being swallowed.
In confinement the motmots are omnivor-
Gus feeders, bread, meat, potatoes, rice,
beans, all crops from the table are greedily
devoured. Even mice and small bids are
not despised. On one occasion l found the
stomach of bird had shot filed with
| snails of small species having delicate,
easily crushed shell. Birds kept In con-
finement greedi1y devoured earth worms and
grubs of all sorts. once placed small
| warbler in the avary where number of
motmots were confined; I returned to the
avary in the course of about a half-hour.
but the warbler was nowhere to be seen. A
more careful search, however, revealed the
feet and tail protruding from bill of one of
the motmots.
The hard parts of insects, small bones of
reptiles, large seeds, and ali indigestibles
parts of their stomach, separated from diges-
tible substances and regurgitated.
The motmots, ike the kingfshers and to-
dies, breed in holes in the ground dug hori-
zontally into the sides of steep hills, ravines
and the banks water courses. Very little if
any nesting material is taken into the exca-
yations. Three or four dusky cream -coIored
| eggs are laid.
| In the general collection Of birds Of the
Field Columbian Museum, there are exam
pies of lessons motmot (motmotus lessoni)
N>AAoSP~sS~>N-
MARTY. And as the observations that are
to follow regarding habits refer more par
ticularly to the former of these two species
I will give rather detailed descriptions of
| lessons motmot.
The upper surface rich, bright, olivaceous
green, the wings more grass-green, the small
feathers covering the base of the quilts, and
| the quilts themselves bluish-green on their
outer aspect; tall feathers green, becoming
blue toward the ends, which have black
| terminal band; in the centre of the crown
there is black patch, surrounded by a
band of silver blue, inclining to turquoise,
behind the nape. While some of the feathers
have a purplish shade toward the ends, the
| forehead, the sides of the face, the cheeks
the ear coverts as well as broad eyebrow
is black; the sides of the neck olive-green-
ish, reaching to the posterior margin of the
! eye and separated from the black of the
ear-coverts by streak of silvery turquoise
blue. Below tn black cheeks is another
E~,.1