#eurypyga

[herpsandbirds]

Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias), DARING YOU, JUST FUCKIN DARING YOU TO TRY SOME OF THIS!!!, family Eurypygidae, order Eurypygiformes, Costa Rica

This bird is the only member of its family.

Its closest living relative is the Kagu of New Caldeonia.

photographs by Freddy Madrigal

[saritawolf]

Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) - (c) SaritaWolf - please do not repost

[briery]

A Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) looking just like a butterfly. By Xavi Bayod on Flickr. (Hi-Res)

[snototter]

A sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) stretches, showing off the pattern on its wings in Costa Rica

by Paul Ellis

[birdblues]

Sunbittern

[naturalsciencesbelgium]

This Sunbittern has eyes on its wings and is amazingly handy! Nice one for #natureisthegreatestshow The Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) looks like a cross between a heron and a rail. But this bird is unique and its exact place among the other birds is still food for discussion. You can find Sunbitterns near forested streams in the lowlands of tropical Central and South America. They mainly live on the ground and are active both during the day and at night. With a slow and deliberate pace they mainly hunt for insects and aquatic invertebrates, which they catch with a quick movement of their long, pointed beak. But it can be even more cunning: the Sunbittern is one of the few bird species that uses bait to attract prey. So it uses tools! With their striped plumage they are inconspicuous, but that changes when they spread their wings and tail, and the spectacular red-yellow-black sunbeam pattern emerges, after which they are named. ‘Eyes' on the wings are very rare in the bird world. Some claim that this particular pattern serves to divert the attention of predators such as birds of prey away from the head and rump. These are the most sensitive parts of its body. Such eye spots are also seen on butterfly wings and fish tails. What is certain is that this pattern plays an important role in courtship and competition with other Sunbitterns. . [images: Tony Hisgett, Rozmiar pierwotny, Tim Sackton]

[hello-birdies]

Eurypyga helias by Rosa Gambóias

[herpsandbirds]

Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias), family Eurypygidae, order Eurypygiformes, found in southern Central America and northern South America

This bird is the only member of its family.

Its closest living relative is the Kagu of New Caldeonia.

photograph by Diego Quesada