ANIMALS

Discovering The Stunning Versicolored Barbet, The Bird with Vibrant, Psychedelic Feathers

If you enjoy watching birds, you’ve probably looked up the most captivating ones in your region. Spotting a tropical bird in a non-tropical place is rare unless it happens to be a pet.

With its vibrant and multicolored plumage, the versicolored barbet is a highly desired bird found in Bolivia and Peru. Although its feathers are eye-catching, the versicolored barbet is more than just a pretty sight—it possesses a remarkable level of complexity.

Image source: Ebird

Image source: Francesco Verones

The bird’s colors are so vibrant that it resembles a cartoon character brought to life. The versicolored barbet always looks fierce and spirited, sporting a blue mustache-like stripe and a red feathered helmet.

This particular bird belongs to a bird family known as Capitonidae, which are called New World Barbets. The versicolored barbet has a strong beak, a characteristic shared by other barbets. Its scientific name is Eubucco Versicolor, and it should not be confused with similar-looking relatives. The versicolored barbet is further classified into three distinct subspecies.

Discover the incredible beauty of the Versicolored Barbet, a bird that bursts with vibrant colors!

Each subspecies of barbet has its unique appearance, but all male barbets share some distinctive features. They have a striking red face and crown, complemented by blue-green feathers above their eyes. Additionally, males exhibit a red half-moon marking on their lower breasts, which separates the lemony yellow chest from the feathered belly.

Image source: @satieairme

Female and male birds exhibit different color patterns.

Female birds display green to blue-green chest feathers, while males showcase vibrant yellow chest feathers. Furthermore, female birds possess a yellowish belly adorned with streaks of green plumage.

Image source: Joao Quental

Although the versicolored barbet is native to Bolivia and Peru, it can now be found across the globe.

When fully grown, barbet subspecies typically measure around 6.3 inches in length. These birds are originally from South America and are not known for migrating. As a result, they can be found year-round in the jungles of Bolivia and Peru.

Image source: @jacamarclub

The versicolored barbet is commonly found in forests that are situated below mountainous regions.

The Versicolored barbet has three different types, and each of them resides in sub-mountainous regions where there are plenty of air plants and mosses. These birds also do well in older secondary forests and are usually found at elevations between 1,000 and 2,000 meters above sea level.

Image source: @ericsonpinedo

There is still much that remains unknown about this particular species.

Studying this bird in its natural habitat is challenging because it is not accustomed to human presence. As a result, both the species and its subspecies have limited information regarding their breeding behaviors.

Barbets typically breed from July to December. Bird watchers have reported observing at least one nest with three eggs inside an existing tree hole.

Image source: Joao Quental

The beak of the versicolored barbet is surrounded by feathers that resemble a mustache.

Image source: @colores_of_the_world

The female versicolored barbet has a blue chin and a green belly.

Image source: Dominic Sherony

Watch the Video here:

Versicolored barbets are not commonly found and are considered rare species. Among the different subspecies, two are classified as being at a low conservation concern by the IUCN, while the Blue-chinned barbet is considered to be at a higher risk of becoming threatened.

ANIMALS

Amazing Video of Unseen Ocean Creatures in the Ningaloo Canyons

The Schmidt Ocean Institute recently explored the Ningaloo Canyons on the western coast of Australia using a robotic underwater vehicle called the ROV Sebastian. Check out the amazing video of what they discovered in the deep parts of the Indian Ocean.

More info: Youtube

ANIMALS

These Pics Are Art and the Artists Are Insects

Flying insects move so quickly that they are hard to follow, but new technology and some smart ideas have helped Spanish photographer Xavi Bou do just that. After spending 10 years focusing on birds in flight for his Ornithographies project, he turned his attention to insects.

For Entomographies, he uses high-speed video footage taken by Adrian Smith, an insect expert at North Carolina State University, to study and record how insects move. Bou then picks multiple frames and combines them into single images that show the fast movements of one or more insects through space and time.

With Smith’s help, Bou has captured the aerial tricks of wasps, the jumps of leafhoppers, and the fluttering of butterflies in amazing detail. He hopes that by doing this, he can make people more aware of the decline in important insect populations around the world.

1. Zebra longwing

This butterfly, which is common in many areas of the Americas, really fits its name. It can fly very high with just a few flaps of its large wings.