The long-wattled umbrellabird (''Cephalopterus penduliger'') is an umbrellabird in the Cotingidae family. Its Spanish names include ''pájaro bolsón, pájaro toro, dungali'', and ''vaca del monte''. The long-wattled umbrellabird is considered rare and it resides in humid to wet premontane and

cloud forest A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest, is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, Montane forest, montane, Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist forest characteri ...

. They are often found on the Pacific slopes of southwest Colombia and western Ecuador, but occasionally are found at lower altitudes.

Description

The male is 40–42 cm in height, with the female being slightly smaller at 35–37 cm. Both sexes are short-tailed and carry an erectile head crest; those of the males are slightly longer at 20–30 cm. The male is distinguished by a large throat

wattle Wattle or wattles may refer to: Plants *''Acacia sensu lato'', polyphyletic genus of plants commonly known as wattle, especially in Australian English **''Acacia'' ***Black wattle, common name for several species of acacia ***Golden wattle, ''A ...

of feathers, while females and juveniles have no or a much smaller wattle. The length of the wattle can be controlled, and it can be retracted in flight. The male generally has black colored shafts in its feathers. The long-wattled umbrellabird's specific name ''penduliger'' derives from Latin ''pendulus'', hanging, and refers to the wattle.

Distribution and habitat

The species shows a high level of

endemism Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

and is found from the southwestern part of

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

to the province of El Oro in

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

, in the bioregion of Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena. It inhabits humid

montane forests Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...

at 1,500-1,800 m above sea level on the ridges and sides of the

Andes The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...

range.

Ecology

Feeding

The species is mostly

frugivorous A frugivore ( ) is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts and seeds. Approximately 20% of mammalian herbivores eat fruit. Frugivores are highly dependent on the abundance ...

, and feeds on large fruit. The fruits of the

Arecaceae The Arecaceae () is a family (biology), family of perennial plant, perennial, flowering plants in the Monocotyledon, monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbing palm, climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly k ...

Lauraceae Lauraceae, or the laurels, is a plant Family (biology), family that includes the bay laurel, true laurel and its closest relatives. This family comprises about 2850 known species in about 45 genus (biology), genera worldwide. They are dicotyled ...

, and

Myrtaceae Myrtaceae (), the myrtle family, is a family of dicotyledonous plants placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtle, pōhutukawa, bay rum tree, clove, guava, acca (feijoa), allspice, and eucalyptus are some notable members of this group. All ...

are preferred. Invertebrates and small vertebrates are also taken.

Reproduction

The long-wattled umbrellabird engages in

lek mating A lek is an aggregation of male animals gathered to engage in competitive displays and courtship rituals, known as lekking, to entice visiting females which are surveying prospective partners with which to mate. It can also refer to a space us ...

, where the males congregate in common areas (

leks Lek or LEK may refer to: * Lek mating, of animals * Albanian lek, currency * Lek (magazine), Norway * Lek (pharmaceutical company), now part of Sandoz * Lek (river), Netherlands * De Lek, Netherlands fiefdom * L.E.K. Consulting, firm * Leung ...

) for display, which are visited by the solitary females. Females select a male with prominent secondary traits such as aggression and territorial behavior. Nests are built in trees or treeferns, and have been recorded at heights of 4.5–5.0 m above ground. Clutch sizes in the genus ''Cephalopterus'' are generally low; only one egg is laid per nesting attempt. Incubation lasts 27 or 28 days. Only the female incubates and cares for the nestling. She provides food for the nestling on average once per hour and includes invertebrates, vertebrates, and regurgitated material.

Conservation

The species has been classified as vulnerable by the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

. A total population of 6,000-15,000 mature individuals was estimated in 2012. It is thought to be under pressure from

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

through

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

and from hunting. The easy-to-locate lek mating areas make it particularly susceptible to trapping. The long-wattled umbrellabird is present in several protected areas. The consolidation of existing scattered reserves, as well as the nomination of several existing protected areas as

biosphere reserves Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) is an intergovernmental scientific program, launched in 1971 by UNESCO, that aims to establish a scientific basis for the 'improvement of relationships' between people and their environments. MAB engages w ...

, could be very beneficial for the species. The curating of forest composition and

reforestation Reforestation is the practice of restoring previously existing forests and woodlands that have been destroyed or damaged. The prior forest destruction might have happened through deforestation, clearcutting or wildfires. Three important purpose ...

have been pointed out as important approaches.

References

External links

A classification of the bird species of South America at Museum.lsu.edu

Birdlife

The Internet Bird Collections

Arkive

EoL

Encyclopædia Britannica
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q908238

long-wattled umbrellabird The long-wattled umbrellabird (''Cephalopterus penduliger'') is an umbrellabird in the Cotingidae family. Its Spanish names include ''pájaro bolsón, pájaro toro, dungali'', and ''vaca del monte''. The long-wattled umbrellabird is considered ra ...

Birds of El Chocó