Plum-throated Cotinga

• anatomíaIts bright blue comes not from pigment but from the microscopic structure of its feathers, which scatters light much as the sky does.
• Its blue comes from no pigment: it is a structural colour produced by microscopic air cavities in the barbs of the feathers, which scatter blue light. A crushed feather loses the colour completely.
• It is one of the hardest birds to see despite its colour: it stays motionless in the high canopy of flooded forest for long stretches, and is only spotted when the sun catches it full on.
• Its feathers were used for centuries in Amazonian ceremonial headdresses, and their intense blue made them an object of trade between peoples hundreds of kilometres apart.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)

Habitat and environment

Canopy of flooded forest, várzea and riverine forest of western Amazonia

Sexual maturity

2 years

Gestation / incubation

25 days of incubation

Litter / clutch size

1 egg

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotinga_maynana

The pins mark the parks where its presence is documented.