Chirocentrodon Bleekerianus (teleostei: Clupeiformes: Pristigasteridae), A Small Predaceous Herring With Folded And Distinctively Oriented Prey In Stomach.

Predaceous fish-eating species of the order Clupeiformes have a large mouth with well-developed teeth, and reach the greatest sizes within their families (up to 90 cm). We found that the pristigasterid Chirocentrodon bleekerianus, a small clupeiform (about 10 cm) from the tropical SW Atlantic, is able to prey on proportionally large clupeoid fishes and caridean shrimps. Fish preys are folded in the stomach of this herring, their heads and tails pointing toward the predator's head. This distinctive orientation of fish prey is also recorded for some small to medium-sized, fish-eating species of the tropical freshwater order Characiformes with canine-like teeth similar to those found in C. bleekerianus.64116516

The Purplish Jay Rides Wild Ungulates To Pick Food

Corvids are renowned for their variable foraging behaviour, and about 20 species in eight genera perch on wild and domestic ungulates to pick ticks on the body of these mammals. Herein I illustrate and briefly comment on the Purplish Jay (Cyanocorax cyanomelas) riding deer and tapir in the Pantanal, Western Brazil. The jay perched on the head or back of the ungulates and searched for ticks, playing the role of a cleaner bird. Deer are rarely reported as hosts or clients of tick-picking birds in the Neotropics. The Purplish Jay is the southernmost Neotropical cleaner corvid reported to date. Given their opportunistic foraging behaviour, a few other Cyanocorax jay species may occasionally play the cleaner role of wild and domestic ungulates. © 2015, Sociedade Brasileira de Ornitologia. All rights reserved.23436536

Save Your Tears: Eye Secretions Of A Ringed Kingfisher Fed Upon By An Erebid Moth

Bodily fluids and secretions of birds are fed upon by flying insects, the best-known example being the worldwide blood-feeding mosquitoes. Much less known are the Neotropical mucus-feeding stingless bees, and the Malagasy tear-feeding moths. Herein I illustrate and briefly comment on a night-roosting Ringed Kingfisher female whose tears were fed upon by an erebid moth in the Colombian Amazon. The moth perched on the bird’s neck and fed on the secretions in the anterior upper corner of the eye. Careful checking of night-roosting birds probably will disclose additional cases of Neotropical bird species sought by tear-feeding moths. © 2015, Sociedade Brasileira de Ornitologia. All rights reserved.23439239

Dangerous Traps: Anhingas Mistake Anthropogenic Debris For Prey Fish At An Urban Site In South-eastern Brazil

Impacts of anthropogenic inedible debris on seabirds have been well documented, but on inland waterbirds this kind of pollution remains poorly recorded. Herein we report 21 instances of inedible objects stuck in the bill of Anhinga (Anhinga anhinga), a fish-eating waterbird which has the cutting edges of the mandible serrated. Disturbance and harm by pieces of plastic, rope, and cotton stuck in the bill were recorded. Debris caused drag and prevented the birds from fishing. Birds with small pieces of material stuck on their bills were still able to fish, but their hunting success decreased. When the debris was large and stuck on the bill for long, the birds possibly starved and some of them died. The time spent to clean up the bill was related to the type of material, ranging from 1 to 17 days. Our records illustrate the deleterious effect that anthropogenic debris has on the life of a Neotropical aquatic inland bird. © 2015, Sociedade Brasileira de Ornitologia. All rights reserved.23438038

The parrotlet Forpus xanthopterygius scrapes at clay nests of the ovenbird Furnarius rufus: tasting or testing a new home?

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)163256259Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Black Vultures (Coragyps atratus) pick organic debris from the hair of a domestic dog in southeastern Brazil

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)1814548Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Five instances of bird mimicry suggested for Neotropical birds: a brief reappraisal

Examples of mimicry among birds are rare worldwide and the Neotropics are no exception. Five cases of mimetic associations suggested for Neotropical birds are here reappraised. The sets Cathartes aura-Buteo albonotatus (Cathartidae and Accipitridae), Ramphastos tucanus-Ramphastos vitellinus (Ramphastidae), Accipiter bicolor-Harpagus diodon (Accipitridae), Philydor rufus-Orchesticus abeillei (Furnariidae and Thraupidae), as well as Chondrohierax uncinatus (Accipitridae) and a subset of falconid and accipitrid raptors are illustrated and field and literature data are presented. The sets Cathartes aura-Buteo albonotatus and Ramphastos tucanus-R. vitellinus seem to have good functional evidences. The first case would qualify as aggressive mimicry, and the second one would qualify as foraging mimicry. The functional evidences of the sets Accipiter bicolor-Harpagus diodon and Philydor rufus-Orchesticus abeillei are less evident than in the first two ones, but additional field studies may strengthen the suggested hypotheses. However, the set Chondrohierax uncinatus-falconid and accipitrid species remains without adequate functional evidences. The resemblance in the plumage pattern and the partial habitat overlap of this latter set indicate mimicry as well, plausibly of the aggressive type.18432833

Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus): bath and drink

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)1918184Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Validated Cleaner: The Cuculid Bird Crotophaga Ani Picks Ticks And Pecks At Sores Of Capybaras In Southeastern Brazil

Information on the role of smooth-billed anis (Crotophaga ani) as tick-pickers on mammals remains controversial. I record here these birds removing ticks and pecking at wounds of capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) in a small reserve at Campinas, São Paulo, southeastern Brazil. The birds inspected the mammals' skin, both in places with and without hair. The hair was parted with bill movements, and ticks were removed by vigorous pulling. The birds also pecked at open or healing sores, from which they extracted small portions of blood clots and dead tissue. The capybaras appeared oblivious to the birds' activity. Even in the case that the cleaning behaviour is restricted to some bird individuals and populations, or places and periods, this record validates the notion that smooth-billed anis removes ticks from herbivorous mammals.81213216BONALDO, R.M., KRAJEWSKI, J.P., SAZIMA, C., SAZIMA, I., Dentition damage in parrotfishes feeding on hard surfaces at Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, southwest Atlantic Ocean (2007) Mar. Ecol. Progr. Ser, 342, pp. 249-254BRADSHAW, C.J.A., WHITE, W.H., Rapid development of cleaning behaviour by Torresian crows Corvus orru on non-native banteng Bos javanicus in northern Australia (2006) J. Avian Biol, 37, pp. 409-411DIXON, J.S., California jay picks ticks from mule deer (1944) Condor, 46, p. 204FITZPATRICK, J.W., WOOLFENDEN, G.E., Florida scrub-jay forages on back of white-tailed deer (1996) Condor, 98, pp. 422-423GREENE, H.W., Natural history and evolutionary biology (1986) Predatorprey relationships: Perspectives and approaches from the study of lower vertebrates, pp. 99-108. , M.E. Feder & G.V. Lauder, eds, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, pVON IHERING, R., (1946) Da vida dos nossos animais. Rottermund, , São LeopoldoKÖSTER, F.L., Zum nistverhalten des ani. (1971) Bonn. Zool. Beitr, 22, pp. 4-27MARTIN, P., BATESON, P., (1986) Measuring behaviour, an introductory guide, , Cambridge University Press, CambridgeMACDONALD, D.W., Feeding associations between capybaras Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris and some bird species (1981) Ibis, 123 (3), pp. 364-366PAYNE, R.B. 1997. Family Cuculidae (cuckoos). In Handbook of the birds of the world. 4. Sandgrouses to cuckoos (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliot & J. Sargatal, eds.). Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, p.508-607QUINN, J. & STARTEK-FOOTE, J.M. 2000. Smooth-billed ani (Crotophaga ani). In: The birds of North America, No. 539 (A. Poole & F. Gill, eds). The Birds of North America, Inc. Philadelphia. Online ed. Dois: 10.2173/bna.539ROSENBERG, D.K., WILSON, M.H., CRUZ, F., The distribution and abundance of the smooth-billed ani Crotophaga ani (L.) in the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador (1990) Biol. Conserv, 51, pp. 113-123SAZIMA, I. 2007. Unexpected cleaners: black vultures (Coragyps atratus) remove debris, ticks, and peck at sores of capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris), with an overview of tick-removing birds in Brazil. Rev. Bras. Ornitol. 15(1):417-426SAZIMA, I., SAZIMA, C., SILVA-JR, J.M., The cetacean offal connection: Feces and vomits of spinner dolphins as a food source for reef fishes (2003) Bull. Mar. Sci, 72 (1), pp. 151-160SICK, H., (1997) Ornitologia brasileira, , Editora Nova Fronteira, Rio de JaneiroTOMAZZONI, A.C., PEDÓ, E., HARTZ, S.M., Feeding associations between capybaras Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris (Linnaeus) (Mammalia, Hydrochaeridae) and birds in the Lami Biological Reserve, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil (2005) Rev. Bras. Zool, 22, pp. 713-716WETHERBEE, B.M., GRUBER, S., ROSA, R.S., Movement patterns of juvenile lemon sharks Negaprion brevirostris within Atol das Rocas, Brazil: A nursery characterized by tidal extremes (2007) Mar. Ecol. Progr. Ser, 343, pp. 283-29