White-eared puffbird

Nystalus chacuru

The white-eared puffbird is a species of bird in the Bucconidae family, the puffbirds. It is found in Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina, and Peru. Its natural habitats are subtropical and tropical dry forests, subtropical and tropical moist lowland forests, dry savanna, and heavily degraded former forest.
White-eared Puffbird checks us out The Brazilian Cerrado is full of interesting and strange creatures - this bird reminded me of the Australian Kookaburras in terms of form, coloration, and behavior. They are not very closely related however, as they are in the Piciformes Order (woodpeckers) while the Kookaburras are in the Coraciiformes Order (Kingfishers and Rollers). Apparently it is a case of parallel evolution. Brazil,Geotagged,Nystalus chacuru,Serra da Canastra,Spring,White-eared puffbird,cerrado

Appearance

Like some other puffbirds, the white-eared puffbird is a round, plump bird with a short, very narrow tail. It has a large head and orange, black-tipped bill, the head appearing almost too large for its body. The sit-and-wait feeding strategy, for insects or opportunistic prey, may explain this body shape.

The bird has a medium brown back and wings, white and black flecked on the breast. The upper breast is white, extending to a narrow-to-medium-width white collar surrounding the neck. The species is named for its distinctive, medium-sized bright white ear patch. It has blackish eyes, black surrounding the white ear patch, and the same brown on its crown as on the wings and back.

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Status: Least concern
EX EW CR EN VU NT LC
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionChordata
ClassAves
OrderPiciformes
FamilyBucconidae
GenusNystalus
SpeciesN. chacuru
Photographed in
Brazil