Hoatzin
A species of Hoatzin, Also known as Stinkbird Scientific name : Opisthocomus hoazin Genus : Hoatzin
Hoatzin, A species of Hoatzin
Also known as:
Stinkbird
Botanical name: Opisthocomus hoazin
Genus: Hoatzin
Content
Description General Info
Photo By Napowildlifecenter , used under CC-BY-SA-3.0 /Cropped and compressed from original 
Description
The hoatzin is pheasant-sized, with a total length of 65 centimetres (26 in), and a long neck and small head. It has an unfeathered blue face with maroon eyes, and its head is topped by a spiky, rufous crest. The long, sooty-brown tail is a broadly tipped buff. The upper parts are dark, sooty-brown-edged buff on the wing coverts, and streaked buff on the mantle and nape. The under parts are buff, while the crissum (the undertail coverts surrounding the cloaca), primaries, underwing coverts and flanks are rich rufous-chestnut, but this is mainly visible when it opens its wings. The hoatzin is an herbivore, eating leaves and fruit, and has an unusual digestive system with an enlarged crop used for fermentation of vegetable matter, in a manner broadly analogous to the digestive system of mammalian ruminants. The alternative name of "stinkbird" is derived from the bird's foul odour, which is caused by the fermentation of food in its digestive system. This is a noisy species, with a variety of hoarse calls, including groans, croaks, hisses and grunts. These calls are often associated with body movements, such as wing spreading. 
Size
70 cm
Life Expectancy
8 years
Nest Placement
Tree
Feeding Habits
Hoatzin primarily consumes leaves, supplemented with fruits and flowers, via bacterial fermentation, akin to ruminants but unique in birds. Clumsily foraging along branches, hoatzin rarely hunts, focusing on a varied plant diet, with over fifty species of leaves identified. Rarely, they may ingest insects accidentally.
Habitat
The hoatzin occupies tropical lowland rainforests, preferring areas with dense vegetation along rivers and streams. It is typically associated with gallery forests in wetland ecosystems, such as those found amidst palm savannas and woodland patches. These birds rely heavily on riparian corridors with abundant food trees, including species like Coccoloba and Macrolobium, essential for foraging and nesting as they construct their nests in overhanging trees near water bodies.
Dite type
Herbivorous
General Info
Feeding Habits
Bird food type
Species Status
Not globally threatened.
Scientific Classification
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