Capuchinbird

BirdSouth America
Written By Alexander Julius Jensen

Perissocephalus tricolor

The capuchinbird is named for its resemblance to Capuchin monks, with the brown plumage around its bald head looking like the monks’ hooded robes.

Capuchin in coat, engraving from an album on religious orders, Paris.

Capuchins

In the 16th century, a group of Franciscans within the Catholic Church broke off to form their own branch, one that would emphasise prayer and poverty. They wore simple brown robes with large cowl-like hoods, giving them the name cappuccio, from the Italian word for "hood". They came to be known as Capuchin monks.¹

This Capuchin order — today composed of more than 11,000 friars in over 100 countries — is best known through its etymological influence. The cappuccino, a coffee lightened with steamed milk, is named so because its colour resembles that of a Capuchin's robe. Also from the Capuchin monks come the capuchin monkeys, some 23 species from the tropical forests in Central America and South America, which reminded 15th-century Portuguese explorers of the monks in their brown robes with their large hoods down. Lesser-known is a unique species of bird from South America, whose odd appearance evokes an unflattering comparison with the monks.

The Capuchin Bird

The capuchinbird, comparable in size to a big pigeon, wears a bulky robe of orange-brown feathers that ends in a high ridge around its bald blue head, as if it's wearing a hood — the bird's feathers, not its baldness, give the capuchinbird its name, as Capuchin monks didn't shave their heads. And while the Capuchins are a religious order of men,² both male and female capuchinbirds share a similar appearance: both bald and donning monk-like, feather "hoods".³

The capuchinbird lives in the tropical evergreen forests of north-eastern South America, far from the Capuchin's Italian origins. Foraging in the lower canopy, its diet — comprised of fruits of at least 37 species with the occasional large insect — is richer than that of most monks, its song more varied than any church choir. The capuchinbird is also known as the calfbird for its "moo"-like vocalisations — which it makes by inflating and deflating air sacs around its throat — but, going by its vocal range, it could likewise be called the frogbird (emitting a croaking "rounhh"), a growlbird (for its growling "wark"), and chainsawbird ("grrrrraaaaaaaaaaaooooooooooooooo", like a distant chainsaw). Some calls serve as alarms, like the growl and raspy "kack", some are contact calls ("wark") given while foraging, while others, sung by males from their high canopy leks (“ooo-AAAAA, ooo-AAAAA”), are calls for coupling. Capuchinbirds are far from celibate.

A lek is, in crude terms, a congregation of horny male birds. Capuchinbirds gather in leks of up to eight males, one of which is the dominant male, his status granting him the best display spot. This "alpha" may get more attention from females — who arrive in groups to survey the goods — but he also receives unwanted attention from subordinate males who constantly pair up and try to take his place by performing synchronised duets (not always perfectly). The rowdy males posture, they "aaa" and "moo", they fluff their feathers, accentuating their baldness. The females are no more cordial, often breaking out into fights amongst themselves. Perhaps the capuchinbird's disagreeable nature stems from the fact that, outside of breeding season, these birds are typically solitary. Amidst the chaotic rabble of the lek, two birds pair and mate. The female then flies off to build a dainty twig cup, she lays a single egg inside, incubates it for nearly a month, and raises the chick all on her own. One tenant of the Capuchin monks, that of giving help to others, doesn't apply to male capuchinbirds.

Cotingas: Monks & Male Models

The sole species in its genus, the capuchinbird belongs to a family known as contingas; the most fashionably diverse of all bird families. Cotingas are models — male models, to be accurate, for, unlike the capuchinbird, whose sexes look nearly identical, most cotingas display a great degree of sexual dimorphism. Males skew towards the extravagant.

A spangled cotinga (Cotinga cayana).

A purple-throated fruitcrow (Querula purpurata).

An Andean cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola peruvianus).

Several cotingas — the banded, the blue, the spangled, and the lovely, just to name a few — have feathers of the most intense electric blue, so bright as to look almost unnatural. The crimson fruitcrow looks like it just bathed in fresh blood, while the purple-throated fruitcrow, otherwise draped in mournful black, has a purple-red throat patch as if it stole a gorget from a hummingbird.

A three-wattled bellbird (Procnias tricarunculatus).

A bearded bellbird (Procnias averano).

A long-wattled umbrellabird (Cephalopterus penduliger).

Many cotingas feature extravagant accessories. Cock-of-the-rocks are the opposite of bald, with males flaunting prominent, fan-like crests at the front of their heads, so large that they completely obscure their beaks. Bellbirds appear to wear a range of facial hair — in actuality, composed of neither hair nor feathers, but fleshy wattles. The white bellbird features a single, braid-like wattle that hangs down the side of its face, the three-wattled bellbird has, well, three wattles that form a kind of stache, the bearded bellbird boasts a full "beard" of stringy wattles below its beak, while the bare-throated bellbird is appropriately "clean shaven", with a striking blue throat. And then there's the long-wattled umbrellabird, with perhaps the most excessive accessory of all: each male has a long, feathered wattle dangling from his neck that can be engorged, made even longer, during an amorous display.

Compared to some of its cotinga kin, the capuchinbird certainly looks austere — a monk among models.

¹ Technically, the Capuchins are referred to as friars because they're part of a mendicant order — an order whose members live a life of austerity, travelling and serving among the common people (whereas “monk” usually implies a life of seclusion in a monastery). So, “Capuchin monk” is an informal title, though it’s commonly used.

² An equivalent order to the male Capuchins (formally known as Order of Friars Minor Capuchin) is the Capuchin Poor Clares. Also known as the 'Capuchinessess', they are the female branch of the Capuchin Franciscan Order, and they live much like their male counterparts.

A noisy friarbird (Philemon corniculatus) is named for its monk/friar-like baldness.

³ A capuchinbird lives in a permanent state of baldness — a condition that causes no distress to the bird itself, given its standards of "bald is beautiful". It somewhat resembles a blackbird or bluejay going through a very unfortunate feather moult, leaving their heads naked and looking too small for their bodies. But, under normal circumstances, it would be hard to mistake the capuchinbird for any other Ave.

Perhaps nearest in appearance would be the bald-headed friarbirds of Australia and New Guinea, which are, in fact, named for their resemblance to a monk/friar with a tonsure haircut — having some or all their hair shaved from their scalp.

Where Does It Live?

⛰️ Tropical lowland evergreen forest, up to 1,400 metres (4,600 ft).

📍 North-eastern South America; Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela.

‘Least Concerned’ as of 12 Jul, 2024.

IUCN

  • Size // Small

    Length // 35 cm (13.7 in)

    Weight // 340 - 420 g (12 - 15 oz)

  • Activity: Diurnal ☀️

    Lifestyle: Solitary (aside from leks) 👤

    Lifespan: N/A

    Diet: Omnivore (primarily frugivorous)

    Favorite Food: Fruits 🍈

  • Class: Aves

    Order: Passeriformes

    Family: Cotingidae

    Genus: Perissocephalus

    Species: P. tricolor

  • The capuchinbird is also known as the calfbird for its "moo"-like vocalisations — which it makes by inflating and deflating air sacs around its throat. Other vocalisations include, but are not limited to, a croaking "rounhh", a growling "wark", an “ooo-AAAAA, ooo-AAAAA” sung by feisty males, and a "grrrrraaaaaaaaaaaooooooooooooooo", like the sound of a distant chainsaw.

    Foraging in the lower canopy, the capuchinbird's diet — comprised of fruits of at least 37 species with the occasional large insect — is richer than that of most monks.

    The bird's feathers, not its baldness, give the capuchinbird its name, as Capuchin monks didn't shave their heads, but were famous for their brown hoods.

    While a capuchin monk may be celibate, the capuchinbird certainly isn't. These birds gather in leks — congregations where horny males show off the goods. One dominant male takes the best display spot but must also put up with subordinate males who constantly pair up to challenge him by way of (imperfectly) synchronised duets.

    The rowdy males posture, they "aaa" and "moo", they fluff their feathers, accentuating their baldness. The females, who've come to peruse the males, are no more cordial; often breaking out into fights amongst themselves.

    The capuchin monks — more properly friars — wore simple brown robes with large cowl-like hoods, giving them the name cappuccio, from the Italian word for "hood". They came to be known as Capuchins. From them, we get the cappuccino (coffee), capuchin monkeys, and, of course, the capuchinbird.

Alexander Julius Jensen
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