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Trumpeter (bird)
Encyclopedia
The trumpeters are a family of birds restricted to the humid forests of the Amazon
and Guiana Shield in South America
. They are named for the trumpeting or cackling threat call of the males. The three species resemble chicken
s in size; they measure 45 to 52 centimetres (18 to 20 inches) long and weigh 1 to 1.5 kilograms (2.2 to 3.3 pounds). They are dumpy birds with long necks and legs and curved bills and a hunched posture. Their heads are small, but their eyes are relatively large, making them look "good-natured". The plumage
is soft, resembling fur or velvet on the head and neck. It is mostly black, with purple, green, or bronze iridescence, particularly on the wing coverts and the lower neck. In the best-known taxa the secondary and tertial flight feather
s are white, grey, or greenish to black, and hairlike, falling over the lower back, which is the same colour. These colours give the three generally accepted species their names.
Trumpeters fly weakly but run fast; they can easily outrun dogs. They are also capable of swimming across rivers. They spend most of the day in noisy flocks, sometimes numbering more than 100, on the forest floor. They feed on fallen fruit (particularly fruit knocked down by monkey
s). They also eat a small amount of arthropods, including ants and flies, and even some reptiles and amphibians. At night they fly with difficulty into trees to roost 6 to 9 metres (20 to 30 feet) above the ground.
Trumpeters nest in a hole in a tree or in the crown of a palm tree. They lay 2 to 5 eggs with rough, white shells, averaging about 76 grams (2.7 ounces). In the Pale-winged Trumpeter
and the Grey-winged Trumpeter
, groups of adults care for a single clutch.
Trumpeters are often used as "guard dogs" because they call loudly when alarmed, become tame easily, and are believed to be adept at killing snake
s. One source states their skill at hunting snakes as a fact, and the nineteenth-century botanist Richard Spruce
gave a very circumstantial account of the friendliness and snake-killing prowess of a tame Grey-winged Trumpeter
. For these reasons Spruce recommended that England import trumpeters to India. However, another source says this prowess is "reputed".
of the Dark-winged Trumpeter resulted in the recommendation of splitting it into three species. In 2010 a review of the phylogeny and biogeography
of all members of the family resulted in a total of 8 species, including two in the Grey-winged Trumpeter complex
, two in the Pale-winged Trumpeter complex, and four in the Dark-winged Trumpeter complex.
Amazon Rainforest
The Amazon Rainforest , also known in English as Amazonia or the Amazon Jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America...
and Guiana Shield in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. They are named for the trumpeting or cackling threat call of the males. The three species resemble chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
s in size; they measure 45 to 52 centimetres (18 to 20 inches) long and weigh 1 to 1.5 kilograms (2.2 to 3.3 pounds). They are dumpy birds with long necks and legs and curved bills and a hunched posture. Their heads are small, but their eyes are relatively large, making them look "good-natured". The plumage
Plumage
Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...
is soft, resembling fur or velvet on the head and neck. It is mostly black, with purple, green, or bronze iridescence, particularly on the wing coverts and the lower neck. In the best-known taxa the secondary and tertial flight feather
Flight feather
Flight feathers are the long, stiff, asymmetrically shaped, but symmetrically paired feathers on the wings or tail of a bird; those on the wings are called remiges while those on the tail are called rectrices . Their primary function is to aid in the generation of both thrust and lift, thereby...
s are white, grey, or greenish to black, and hairlike, falling over the lower back, which is the same colour. These colours give the three generally accepted species their names.
Trumpeters fly weakly but run fast; they can easily outrun dogs. They are also capable of swimming across rivers. They spend most of the day in noisy flocks, sometimes numbering more than 100, on the forest floor. They feed on fallen fruit (particularly fruit knocked down by monkey
Monkey
A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...
s). They also eat a small amount of arthropods, including ants and flies, and even some reptiles and amphibians. At night they fly with difficulty into trees to roost 6 to 9 metres (20 to 30 feet) above the ground.
Trumpeters nest in a hole in a tree or in the crown of a palm tree. They lay 2 to 5 eggs with rough, white shells, averaging about 76 grams (2.7 ounces). In the Pale-winged Trumpeter
Pale-winged Trumpeter
The Pale-winged Trumpeter , also known as the White-winged Trumpeter, is a species of bird in the Psophiidae family...
and the Grey-winged Trumpeter
Grey-winged Trumpeter
The Grey-winged Trumpeter is a member of a small family of birds, the Psophiidae. It is found in the northern Amazon Rainforest and Guiana Shield in tropical South America...
, groups of adults care for a single clutch.
Trumpeters are often used as "guard dogs" because they call loudly when alarmed, become tame easily, and are believed to be adept at killing snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
s. One source states their skill at hunting snakes as a fact, and the nineteenth-century botanist Richard Spruce
Richard Spruce
Richard Spruce was an English botanist. One of the great Victorian botanical explorers, Spruce spent approximately 15 years exploring the Amazon from the Andes to the mouth, and was one of the first Europeans to visit many of the places where he collected specimens.The plants and objects collected...
gave a very circumstantial account of the friendliness and snake-killing prowess of a tame Grey-winged Trumpeter
Grey-winged Trumpeter
The Grey-winged Trumpeter is a member of a small family of birds, the Psophiidae. It is found in the northern Amazon Rainforest and Guiana Shield in tropical South America...
. For these reasons Spruce recommended that England import trumpeters to India. However, another source says this prowess is "reputed".
Species
Traditionally only three species of trumpeters have been recognised. In 2008 a review of the morphologyMorphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
of the Dark-winged Trumpeter resulted in the recommendation of splitting it into three species. In 2010 a review of the phylogeny and biogeography
Biogeography
Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species , organisms, and ecosystems in space and through geological time. Organisms and biological communities vary in a highly regular fashion along geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, isolation and habitat area...
of all members of the family resulted in a total of 8 species, including two in the Grey-winged Trumpeter complex
Species complex
A species complex is a group of closely related species, where the exact demarcation between species is often unclear or cryptic owing to their recent and usually still incomplete reproductive isolation. Ring species, superspecies and cryptic species complex are example of species complex...
, two in the Pale-winged Trumpeter complex, and four in the Dark-winged Trumpeter complex.
- Grey-winged TrumpeterGrey-winged TrumpeterThe Grey-winged Trumpeter is a member of a small family of birds, the Psophiidae. It is found in the northern Amazon Rainforest and Guiana Shield in tropical South America...
, Psophia crepitans- Grey-winged Trumpeter, Psophia (crepitans) crepitans
- Napo Trumpeter, Psophia (crepitans) napensis
- Pale-winged (or White-winged) TrumpeterPale-winged TrumpeterThe Pale-winged Trumpeter , also known as the White-winged Trumpeter, is a species of bird in the Psophiidae family...
, Psophia leucoptera- White-winged Trumpeter, Psophia (leucoptera) leucoptera
- Ochre-winged Trumpeter, Psophia (leucoptera) ochroptera
- Dark-winged TrumpeterDark-winged TrumpeterThe Dark-winged Trumpeter is a species of bird in the Psophiidae family. It is found in the Amazon Rainforest of Brazil, but only south of the Amazon River and east of the Madeira River. The eastern range of Dark-winged Trumpeter extends into the lower adjacent Tocantins River drainage in the...
, Psophia viridis- Green-winged Trumpeter, Psophia (viridis) viridis
- Brown-winged Trumpeter, Psophia (viridis) dextralis
- Dark-winged Trumpeter, Psophia (viridis) obscura
- Psophia (viridis) interjecta – should possibly be merged with dextralis.
External links
- Trumpeter videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Gray-Winged Trumpeter at the National AviaryNational AviaryThe National Aviary, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is America's only independent indoor nonprofit aviary. It is also America's largest aviary, and the only accorded honorary "National" status by the United States Congress.-Location and features:...