Cristalino Jungle Lodge Report: Sep 29-Oct 5, 2011

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by Rich Hoyer on October 4, 2011 · 5 comments

in Birding Neotropics

This week’s update from Cristalino Jungle Lodge takes the form of a series of photos of one of my favorite birds, the Sunbittern.

I’m blown away by taxonomic oddities such as the monotypic family (containing just one species) Eurypygidae. Based on recently analyzed genetic evidence, it and the Kagu from New Caledonia were removed from the clumsy giant order Gruiformes and placed in their own order, Eurypygiformes. One order, two families, two species, and an entire hemisphere apart. Hooray for plate tectonics.

I’ve been guiding lots of guests at Cristalino Jungle Lodge lately, and since everyone gets to see Sunbittern, I try to get them equally fascinated with this species – not only its taxonomy but also its mind-blowing wing pattern, visible only when it flies. It never fails to please.

Enjoy.

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Tagged as: Cristalino Jungle Lodge, Eurypygidae, Eurypygiformes, Rich Hoyer, Sunbittern

Article by Rich Hoyer

Rich Hoyer is first and foremost a birder whose subconscious registers and identifies every bird he hears, even when he isn't birding. But he actually started keying out wildflowers , catching reptiles, and raising butterflies before he discovered birding at age 14, and has since branched out to enjoy photographing and identifying dragonflies, grasshoppers, spiders and almost anything else alive. For the past 13 years he has been leading birding and natural history tours for WINGS. Among his regular destinations are Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, the Galapagos, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Jamaica. Originally from Oregon, he currently lives in Tucson, Arizona.

Rich has written 79 awesome articles for us.

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  • http://profiles.google.com/birdingisfun Robert Mortensen

    Ahh…a bird with butterfly wings!  Sweet!

  • Lee Dingain

    Stunning birds! I never fail to be amazed by these every time I see one. Great shots!

  • http://profiles.google.com/thierry.lach Thierry Lach

    Beautiful!  Thanks for sharing!

  • Chatterbirds

    Wow, wow, wow! What a gallery of the neotropical Eurypigiform!

  • Pingback: The Best of Birdingblogs.com in 2011

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