Black-headed trogon

The black-headed trogon (Trogon melanocephalus) is a species of bird in the family Trogonidae. It is found in Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, and heavily degraded former forest.

Black-headed trogon
Near Tulum, Mexico
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Trogoniformes
Family: Trogonidae
Genus: Trogon
Species:
T. melanocephalus
Binomial name
Trogon melanocephalus
Gould, 1836
Male black-headed trogon showing undertail pattern

Description

This trogon measures 28 cm (11 in) and weighs about 89.4 g (3.15 oz).[2][3] Males and females both have bright yellow underparts with a narrow band of white separating the yellow from a dark chest. Distinctive markings include a dark eye surrounded by a light blue eye ring and black tail feathers with broad white tips. Males have black heads and breasts with a blue-green sheen on the nape, back and wings. Females are similar, but duller yellow below and slate grey above, with none of the blue-green sheen of the male.[3]

They eat both fruit and insects, which they capture during brief sallies from an exposed perch.[3]

The black-headed trogon excavates its nest in active termitaria in the branches of trees. It lays 2–3 white eggs which are incubated for 17 days. Chicks are capable of flight 16–17 days after hatching.[3]

References
  1. BirdLife International (2012). "Trogon melanocephalus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2013.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. Garrigues, Richard; Dean, Robert (2007). The Birds of Costa Rica. Ithaca: Zona Tropical/Comstock/Cornell University Press. p. 140. ISBN 978-0-8014-7373-9.
  3. Riehl, C. (2012). Schulenberg, T.S. (ed.). "Black-headed Trogon (Trogon melanocephalus)". Neotropical Birds Online. Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Retrieved 8 July 2014.


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