An Uncertain Future Quetzals are beautiful and culturally important. Yet they face many threats to their long-term survival. Te most serious problem is loss of habitat. Many of the forests where the bird lives have been chopped down. Some were cut by the logging industry.


Others were cut to clear land for livestock or for growing coffee. Because of these activities, areas where quetzals can live have become separated from each other. Tis process, called fragmentation, makes it harder for quetzals to travel to find food or find mates.


WORDWISE


Other Threats Predators are also a problem. Long-tailed weasels, squirrels, and even other birds raid quetzal nests. Tese animals eat quetzal eggs or chicks. Less than 20 percent of baby quetzals survive. Adult quetzals face predators, too. Owls, hawks, and wild cats hunt them. Humans have an impact on quetzals, too.


Some people still hunt quetzals for their feathers or even as food. Others try to capture quetzals. Tey want to sell the birds as pets. Tis is illegal. It can also be fatal to the birds. Quetzals do not survive long in captivity.


Aztec: American Indian people dominant in Mexico before the Spanish conquest of the 16th century


culture: the customs, beliefs, laws, and ways of living that belong to a people


fragmentation: the division of large, continuous habitats into smaller, more isolated pieces


Mayan: American Indian people inhabiting southeast Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Belize, and Honduras whose civilization reached its height around AD 300-900


Male quetzals have long, streaming tail feathers. Females do not.


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