Blue Manakin - Chiroxiphia caudata

Blue Manakin Chiroxiphia caudata
(aka Swallow-tailed Manakin)

Brazilian name: Tangará

Male Blue Manakin, Intervales, São Paulo, Brazil, April 2004 - click for larger image

The Blue Manakin is distributed in south-east Brazil and into adjacent regions of Paraguay and Argentina. It is found in Atlantic Rain Forest, secondary woodland and forest edges.

The male is unmistakable with his red crown, black face, blue body and black wings, not to mention the elongated tail. The female is olive all over.

The males form leks and perform an intricate courtship dance before a female. There is an excellent video of this from Cicero Spiritus on YouTube.

There are recordings on xeno-canto, a distribution map from NatureServe and additional information available via Avibase. There is a page with excellent photos on Wikiaves.

Male Blue Manakin, Teresópolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 2008 - click for larger image

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