Surucua trogon

Appearance

The nominate subspecies "T. s. surrucura" is 26 to 28 cm long and weighs 56.3 to 78 g. The male has a blackish face and throat with an orange ring around the eye. The crown, neck, and breast are royal blue and the back a coppery green that transitions to turquoise-green on the upperside of the tail. The folded wing has fine vermiculation that looks gray at a distance. The belly is pinkish red and the flanks gray. The underside of the tail is white with a black bar across the end. The female is mostly gray with the red of the belly beginning lower. Instead of the orange ring around the eye there are small white spots before and after it. The underside of the tail has a black and white pattern. "T. s. aurantius" is about 28 cm long. The male differs from the nominate by having a yellow eye ring and an orange belly. The female's belly is yellowish white to orange-yellow.

Distribution

The nominate subspecies of Surucua trogon is found from eastern Paraguay and northeastern Argentina east into Uruguay and in Brazil as far north as southeastern Tocantins. "T. s. aurantius" has a more restricted range in east central and eastern Brazil from Bahia south to São Paulo state. They inhabit the mid levels of primary and well-developed secondary forest and semideciduous woodland. "T. s. aurantius" often associates with bamboo. "T. s. surrucura" occurs as high as 1,150 m in Bahia, 1,550 m in Minas Gerais, and higher still in Rio de Janeiro state. "T. s. aurantius" occurs up to about 2,000 m.

Status

The IUCN follows HBW taxonomy and so treats the southern and northern Surucua trogons separately. It assesses both as being of Least Concern. The population of neither has been quantified but both are believed to be decreasing. Both subspecies are found in several protected areas but outside them are known to be affected by forest fragmentation.

Reproduction

The Surucua trogon's breeding season spans from September to December and possibly into January. The nest is a cavity in a decayed tree or an arboreal termite nest. The one described clutch contained three eggs.

Food

The Surucua trogon's diet includes a wide variety of insects, both adults and larva, and also fruits and occasionally flowers. It sometimes joins mixed-species foraging flocks.

Migration

The more northerly "T. s. aurantius" appears to be a year round resident in its range. "T. s. surrucura" is mostly sedentary but the southernmost birds move north for the austral winter.