#bucconidae

Black-breasted Puffbird (Notharchus pectoralis), family Bucconidae, order Piciformes, found in NW South America

this is the excellently-named buff-bellied puffbird! a rather elusive critter, endemic to far southern Brazil and a tiny sliver of eastern Paraguay. like other puffbirds, they sit motionless on a perch to wait for passing insects large enough to be worth snatching. oftentimes, puffbirds sit in pairs, with partners staying together year-round and hunting from very close perches. they regurgitate the exoskeletons of the insects they eat in pellets, similarly to owls. this critter prefers lowland forests, but often moves to clearings or human-disturbed areas in order to have a wider field of view.

it's distinguished from other, similar species by its titular buff-colored belly. in addition, the buff-bellied puffbird is one of a few critters that have eye color variation! it's not super dramatic, but the tones they present vary from lighter red-brown to brown so dark it's nearly visibly black. formerly, it was considered the same species as the Guianian and white-necked puffbirds, but this was rectified in the late twentieth century on the grounds that these birds look absolutely nothing alike. puffbirds nest in burrows, usually dug by beak in sandy banks, but the buff-bellied puffbird prefers a more exotic living situation - the pair dig a burrow in an arboreal termite nest! the burrow is unlined, consisting of a simple tunnel leading to a rounded cavity, and both parents incubate the eggs, attend to their chicks, and accost invaders.

26 July 2026

Day 14 of Pied Month - Pied Puffbird! Originally planned to do bi since it's in the name, but it looks so round so I had to give it the circle of the intersex flag

Reference photo by Francesco Veronesi

Black Nunbird (Monasa atra)

Nonnula sclateri by Fernando Angulo Known as fulvous-chinned nunlet.

Guianan Puffbird (Notharchus macrorhynchos), family Bucconidae, order Piciformes, northern Brazil