Parque Nacional del Manu Reserva Nacional Tambopata Parque Nacional Bahuaja-Sonene Cocha Cashu animals birds Ramphotrigon plants grasses bamboo Guadua animal behavior nesting natural history distributions Madre de Dios Bibliography
Little is known about the biological aspects of three South American fly-catchers of the genus Ramphotrigon. Some fly-catcher nests, behavior patterns and habitats of this species were observed at the TRZ. At TRZ, Ramphotrigon fuscicauda is little known and restricted to low-lying forests, where it prefers bamboo formations and low entangled vegetation near the borders of the forest. This species has also been reported in Balta (O'Neill 1969) and in Cocha Cashu (National Park of Manu: Fitzpatrick, pers. comm. and Terborgh, in press); although it is not definite, R. fuscicauda seems to be one of the species related to the overflowed prairie forest in lowlands, but also along creeks in more hilly zones, (bases of the Andean slopes; Remsen and Parker, in press). Generally, this species is found in couples at altitudes between 2-6 m and catching insects among the foliage. In October 1981, a nest of this species was found located on the base of a natural cavity among the branches of a fallen tree and had two eggs. The second species is R. ruficauda is very common in zones with open vegetation in seasonally flooded forest and specially in terra firme forests on the TRZ and other localities in eastern Peru. This species is similar in morphology and behavior to R. fuscicauda, and lives on the undergrowth dominated by bamboo and vine tangles, sharing habitats with this species. In August 1980 (in the middle of the dry season at Tambopata) a nest of R. ruficauda was discovered on the main trail of the TRZ; on the base of a broken branch cavity that remained suspended when it dropped. The nest had three eggs, and later hatched only two, the nestlings were feeded by the adults following a particular pattern of behavior, however, the young birds disappeared, apparently victims of predators. R. megacephala is distributed in some places through Amazonia, the coastal mountains of southeastern Brazil and the forests of eastern Paraguay and northeastern Argentina. At Tambopata, this species is common in bamboo zones at seasonally flooded forest; almost always encountered singly, but ocassionally follows mixed-species flocks. This species is difficult to see, probably because it perches motionless for long periods. In November 1979, a nest of R. megacephala was found at the bottom of a cavity in a broken-off stump of a Euterpe palm containing two fully feathered nestlings that disappeared three days later. Information on the characteristics of the nests and eggs of these species as well as the particularities of their songs are given, and data of Ramphotrigon specimens pertaining to LSUMZ collection.