Turquoise-browed motmot

The turquoise-browed motmot (Eumomota superciliosa) is a bird of the motmot family. It lives in Central America, from south-east Mexico (mostly the Yucatán Peninsula) to Costa Rica. The turquoise-browed motmot is a colourful bird, mostly turquoise, green and orange. It is common and not in danger. It lives in fairly open habitats such as on the edges of forests and scrubland.

The motmots live in the tropical forests of Central America. They are brightly coloured with a strong beak. They have a signature tail with two bare feathers ending in tufts, just like this bird. This effect is got by the tail feathers having no barbs along the middle section.Murphy, Troy G. 2007. Racketed tail of the male and female turquoise-browed motmot: male but not female tail length correlates with pairing success, performance, and reproductive success  Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 61: 911-918.

This motmot has other local names. Itis called Torogoz in El Salvador and Guardabarranco in Nicaragua. It is the national bird of these two countries.

References

Other websites

 Motmot Research, Troy G. Murphy 

Category:Coraciiformes
Category:Birds of North America
Category:Birds of Central America

Category:National symbols of El Salvador
Category:National symbols of Nicaragua