Todus subulatus
The Broad-billed Tody (Todus subulatus) is a captivating, diminutive bird endemic to the island of Hispaniola, renowned for its vibrant plumage and distinctive foraging style. Averaging a mere 10-11.5 cm (4-4.5 inches) in length and weighing just 5-7 grams, it boasts brilliant emerald green upperparts, a contrasting white breast and belly, and a strikingly bright red throat patch. Its most defining feature, and the source of its common name, is a broad, flattened bill, dark on top and often r...
The Broad-billed Tody primarily inhabits subtropical and tropical moist lowland forests, heavily shaded coffee plantations, and areas of disturbed secondary growth, typically found from sea level up to around 2000 meters in elevation.
The diet of the Broad-billed Tody consists predominantly of insects, including crickets, beetles, butterflies, moths, flies, wasps, and spiders, which they capture through a specialized sally-gleaning foraging method.
Broad-billed Todies are diurnal and typically observed singly or in pairs, maintaining year-round territories. Their foraging strategy is distinctive: they sally forth from a low, concealed perch with rapid, fluttering wing beats, gleaning insects directly from the undersides of leaves and branch...
The Broad-billed Tody is strictly endemic to the island of Hispaniola, encompassing both Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Its distribution is widespread across the island, occupying suitable forest habitats from sea level up to approximately 2000 meters (6500 feet) in elevation, though it is gen...
Least Concern
- The Broad-billed Tody is one of the smallest members of the order Coraciiformes, which also includes kingfishers and rollers. - Its unique, flattened bill has earned it the nickname 'shovel-billed' tody among some birders. - Despite its small size, it can excavate an impressive nesting tunnel u...