Blue-crowned Motmot

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Blue-crowned Motmot
St. Louis Zoo

Range: Central and South America, from northeastern Mexico to northern Argentina.
Habitat: Open woodlands and edges of tropical rainforests
Conservation Status: Common
Scientific Name: Momotus momota

Motmots feed primarily on insects, crushing them in their saw-edged bill. They round out this diet with fruit and occasionally larger prey animals like lizards, frogs, and even mice. If the prey is too large to swallow whole, the birds may club it against a branch to kill it. Blue-crowned motmots have also been observed carrying inedible objects, probably in an attempt to court a mate.

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