Phibalura flavirostris
The Swallow-tailed Cotinga (Phibalura flavirostris) is a strikingly beautiful passerine belonging to the Cotingidae family, renowned for its vivid plumage and distinctive forked tail. Males are particularly eye-catching, sporting a bright yellow throat and belly, contrasting with a black crown, nape, and back. A prominent black collar separates the yellow throat from the white breast, which features fine black scaling. Their long, deeply forked tail, reminiscent of a swallow's, measures about...
This species primarily inhabits humid montane forests, forest edges, and secondary growth, often preferring areas with araucaria pines and dense understory. It is typically found at elevations ranging from 500 to 2,000 meters in its Atlantic Forest range and 1,500 to 2,500 meters in the Andes.
The diet consists primarily of insects caught in flight (sallying), including beetles, cicadas, and moths, and also incorporates small fruits, particularly berries and mistletoe species.
Swallow-tailed Cotingas are diurnal, active during the day, and generally forage singly or in pairs, though they can sometimes join mixed-species flocks outside the breeding season. Their foraging strategy involves acrobatic aerial sallies to catch flying insects, often launched from exposed perc...
The Swallow-tailed Cotinga exhibits a disjunct distribution across southeastern South America, primarily within Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. Its main breeding range spans the Atlantic Forest biome of southeastern Brazil (from Espírito Santo south to Rio Grande do Sul), eastern Paraguay, and n...
Least Concern
- Its strikingly forked tail, which gives it its common name, can be almost half the bird's total body length. - Unlike many cotingas, which are primarily frugivorous, the Swallow-tailed Cotinga has a significant insectivorous component to its diet, catching many insects in flight. - It is one of...