Bird of the Week: Puerto Rican Tody
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The newest bird of the week is one handsome little tody endemic to a single Caribbean island.
Name:
Common: Puerto Rican tody
Scientific: Todus mexicanus
Where It Is Found:
As the name suggests, this critter is solely found on the island of Puerto Rico. It’s mostly in forested areas and dense thickets, and it’s pretty common in those habitats throughout the island.
The birds shown on this page were spotted in El Yunque National Forest.
Although impacted from some habitat conversion and non-native predators, this bird is listed as “least concern” by the IUCN.
Relationships:
There are a whopping five species of tody, and each of them is endemic to a single Caribbean island! The Puerto Rican Tody is probably most closely related to the Jamaican Tody. Cuba also has its own little green bird, while Hispanola (Haiti/Dominican Republic) has two species.
In the diverse Order Coraciiformes, the nearest taxa relative to these guys is probably the super-cool motmots in Central and South America.
Distinguishing Features:
This is one little jewel of a sparkling green bird. The bright green head, back, and wings actually blend well with lush green vegetation. They have a bright red throat patch (and lower bill) and a nicely contrasting bright white chest and belly.
Being super pretty isn’t just for the boys, either. The males and females look mostly the same, with only the eye color to distinguish them.
Despite their green camo, they can often be spotted fairly easily due to their tendency to forage frequently, usually by flycatching or gleaning.
Being non-songbirds, they do not vocalize a pretty song to match their pretty plumage, instead creating a nasal beep.
Likes:
Insects. Lots of yummy insects. Territory size will depend on how much prey is available. Regardless of territory size, they eats loads of insects. And when they get the chance, they might even eats frogs or lizards!
Tunnels. Todies excavate tunnels and nest at the end of the burrow. They usually even create far more tunnels than needed for nesting. That’s one industrious little bird!
Saving energy. The Puerto Rican has a lower body temperature than other birds in its Order, meaning they spend less energy in general. But they can also lower their body temperature and go into torpor.
But NOT other todies. Nope, no sir. Get your little green tail out of my space. Todies are territorial. There could be displays, like trilling and head-bobbing, when a tody gets feisty. No joke, though – while in Puerto Rico, we did see one tody act very unwelcoming toward a car’s side-view mirror.
A Note About Names:
You might think I’m finally satisfied, huh?
It’s called a “Puerto Rican Tody”. Simple:
- It is only found in Puerto Rico.
- It’s a tody.
Clearly, they got the naming correct this time!
Or did they?
The specific epithet of this bird’s scientific name is mexicanus. Seriously?! This is particularly interesting because many other endemics on this island do indeed bear the specific epithet of “portoricensis”, which seems a bit more accurate!
