FIRST EUROPEAN BREEDING SUCCESS OF THE FEATURE


GOLDEN-HEADED QUETZAL


O


IN WELTVOGELPARK WALSRODE


bserving Trogons requires much patience and persistence. Trogons belong to the more calm representatives of the bird world and are mainly found in the treetops, where they can sit motionless on a branch for many hours, only leaving for a short time in order to search for food. With their short, rounded wings they can fly strongly, agile and almost soundless over short distances, maneuvering accurately through the dense forests they live in. Trogons are cavity nesters, and in the wild they dig their own nests in rotting tree trunks and termite mounds, or they use old woodpecker nests and natural cavities in trees. Both sexes participate in the construction of the nest and the incubation of the clutch, which usually consists of two eggs. Both parents care for the chicks, the male to a greater extent.


An interesting member of the Trogonid family is the Golden-headed Quetzal. This species lives in western South America, where it occupies humid highland forest habitats of the Andes in up to 3100 m. It mainly feeds on fruits of wild avocado and fig trees, but it occasionally takes insects and some small reptiles, too. The males of


BIRD SCENE 07


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