Geographic Range
Long-tailed manakins,
Chiroxiphia linearis
, range from southeastern Mexico, south of Oaxaca, to northwestern Costa Rica, along
the Pacific coast (Anciaes and Peterson, 2006; Arévalo and Heeb, 2013; Doucet and
Hill, 2009; eBird, 2012). There have been reports of long-tailed manakins as far south
as northern Panama (eBird, 2012).
- Biogeographic Regions
- neotropical
Habitat
Long-tailed manakins are found along the Pacific coast in mangroves, lowlands, premontane
tropical moist forests, and tropical dry forests (Doucet et al., 2007; Foster, 1976;
Slud, 1957; Trainer and McDonald, 1995). Typically, this species is found in areas
with a closed canopy (Foster, 1976). Throughout their range seasonality occurs and
each habitat experiences a rainy season, May to December, and a dry season, January
to April (Doucet et al., 2007; Foster, 1976; Slud, 1957).
- Habitat Regions
- tropical
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- forest
- rainforest
- Aquatic Biomes
- coastal
Physical Description
Long-tailed manakins are medium-sized and sexually dimorphic, with bright orange feet
(Foster, 1976). Female plumage is dull olive-green that changes very little as birds
age. Female long-tailed manakins have a greater wingspan than their male counterpart.
Males have brightly ornamented plumage with long central tail feathers that assist
in courtship rituals. The primary body plumage of males is black with vibrant light-blue
mantles and a bright red crown. A study completed in Costa Rica found the body mass
of males to be between 16 and 20 grams and the body mass of females is between 18
and 24 grams (Arévalo and Heeb, 2013). Immature males resemble females, with dull
olive-green plumage and red crowns, as seen on adult males. Plumage maturation in
males is delayed over a course of 3 to 5 years, with intermediate plumage stages in
between until sexual maturity is reached. Light-blue mantles are the final addition
to an immature male's plumage development (Slud, 1957).
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- homoiothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- sexes colored or patterned differently
- male more colorful
- ornamentation
Reproduction
Long-tailed manakins have a polygynous mating system where one male may copulate with
many females at his lek site. To attract a mate, adult, male manakins perform intricate
courtship displays. The display often begins with males sounding a "cheeoo hoo" note
to draw birds to their selected lek site (Slud, 1957). Courtship displays consist
of an alpha and a beta male working as a partnership, however, only the alpha copulates
with the female. Young males that have not been assigned a beta role will assist several
alphas until they establish their dominance and make social connections. In most cases,
it takes 8 years before a long-term partnership as a beta male is established (Trainer
and McDonald, 1995). There are at least two forms of courtship dance (Slud, 1957).
The first variation starts with the alpha and beta males perched 10 to 15 cm apart
(Trainer and McDonald, 1995). The males will begin by using a "miaow-raow" call that
is repeated throughout the dance. Each bird will take turns jumping, hovering while
facing the female, and returning to their previous location. As the males jump, they
bow their head to showcase their bright red crown to the female. At the same time,
they fluff their light-blue mantles and allow their tail feathers to be fully visible.
The second variation of the courtship dance appears as a juggling act. The dance is
nearly identical to the first variation but as one male leaps into the air the other
moves over to take his location on the perch before similarly jumping. As this dance
occurs, the alpha male makes the "miaow-raow" call and the beta male makes a low ticking
sound. The females will watch from a nearby perch indifferently, or, if they are interested,
they will fly to the perch the males are using and interfere with the performance.
After the jumping sequence has concluded, the two males fly away in a fashion that
resembles the flight pattern of a blue morpho, a large species of butterfly. The males
fly slowly in a seemingly random path with a slight bounce (Slud 1957). A study done
in Costa Rica discovered that females are more likely to visit a lek site if the singing
frequencies of the two males are relatively similar (Trainer and McDonald, 1995).
- Mating System
- polygynous
Long-tailed manakins begin breeding in March, with most females undergoing ova enlargement
and brood patch development at this time, and can last until September. Nesting occurs
during the rainy and dry seasons and the majority of nests are active with eggs or
young between April and July. Male long-tailed manakins reach sexual maturity from
3 to 5 years after hatching (Slud, 1957). Females are reproductively active one year
after hatching and, on average, lay 1 to 2 beige eggs that have dark brown spots,
generally concentrated on the larger end, covering them. The incubation period is
unknown as well, as the time to fledging, however, it is believed that fledging may
occur in August or September. According to a study conducted in the Guanacaste Region
of Costa Rica, average birth weight is 3.0 grams. The nestlings have gray or tan natal
down present in their capital, dorsal, scapulohumeral, femoral, and alar tracts. They
also have a short black-tipped bill and a yellow, lined mouth (Foster, 1976).
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- seasonal breeding
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- oviparous
Male long-tailed manakins do not assist with nest building or rearing young. Nest
building begins in March and takes approximately 3 days to complete. Females choose
trees that are less than 3 meters tall and construct the nest in such a way that the
nearby branches and leaves create a canopy for protection. Many nests are located
in
Terminalia lucida
. Long-tailed manakin nests hang between a forked branch or from the end of a branch.
According to a nesting study, nest materials include spider web or cocoon fibers,
fungal rhizomorphs, moss, leaf blades, and other plant fibers. Females will delay
incubation for a day after laying the first egg. Once the eggs have hatched, the female
will remove fecal matter from the nest regularly and will return to the nest with
small fruit to feed the young. If the female detects a disturbance nearby, she will
hop out of the nest and perch in a nearby tree to watch vigilantly until the perceived
threat is gone. The nesting success of long-tailed manakins is very low due to predators
and nest destruction from wind. Eggs have been observed rolling out of a nest during
a period of high winds, which occur during the dry season (December through April)
(Foster, 1976).
- Parental Investment
- altricial
- female parental care
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-weaning/fledging
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-independence
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
Lifespan/Longevity
Long-tailed manakins have a relatively long life span. They likely live 12 years or
more (McDonald, 1989a). A study analyzing connectivity in their social environment,
determined that one of the birds used in the study was at least 18 years old when
it was last seen (McDonald, 2007). The longevity of long-tailed manakins could be
attributed to their courtship dance, which involves two male birds. The additional
bird may provide increased vigilance and result in a decrease in predation (Macedo,
2010).
Behavior
Long-tailed manakins are non-migratory and may have home ranges of up to 80 hectares
(McDonald, 1989b). They only forage for roughly an hour a day with trips lasting less
than 4 minutes. Individuals are able to feed simultaneously in the same tree without
intraspecific aggression (Leck, 1969). Researchers observed that, during a food shortage,
adult males spent more time feeding and performed fewer courtship displays (Foster,
1977). Only males socialize and this occurs only at lek sites (Trainer and McDonald,
1995). There is little known about long-tailed manakin behavior.
- Key Behaviors
- arboreal
- flies
- diurnal
- motile
- sedentary
- dominance hierarchies
Home Range
Communication and Perception
Long-tailed manakins communicate using various calls and choreographed courtship dances.
Common vocalizations include one to four "coo's" or "cow's", a rapid "kur" repeated
several times, and singular "uh-ahhhr", "pyeek", and "toe-lay-doe" calls. Males often
sound a "cheeoo hoo" note to draw birds to their selected lek site (Slud, 1957). Courtship
displays consist of an alpha and a beta male working as a partnership, however, only
the alpha copulates with the female (Trainer and McDonald, 1995). There are at least
two forms of the courtship dance (Slud, 1957). A study done in Costa Rica discovered
that females are more likely to visit a lek site if the singing frequencies of the
two males are relatively similar (Trainer and McDonald, 1995).
- Other Communication Modes
- duets
Food Habits
Long-tailed manakins are frugivores and prefer to eat fruit from tucuido (
Ardisia revoluta
) and seeds from
Stemmadenia donnell-smithii
. Tucuidos produce small, dark purple fruits that ripen in March and are produced
in abundance until April, or the start of the rainy season. The species of fruit consumed
varies annually and is based on weather variations. If there is a shortage of ripe
tucuido fruit, then long-tailed manakins will eat fruit in the ripening stage before
eating green, or unripe, fruit (Foster, 1977). They also consume the fruit of
Trichilia cuneata
, the seeds of
Muntingia calabura
and
W. solancea
, as well as various insects (Foster, 1976; Murray, 1988).
- Animal Foods
- insects
- Plant Foods
- seeds, grains, and nuts
- fruit
Predation
Eggs are preyed on by a number of local snake species and nests are destroyed by large
lizards, such as
Ctenosaura similis
and
Basiliscus basiliscus
. Opossums, white-throated capuchins, kinkajous, and coatis are known to prey on eggs
and birds. Turquoise-browed motmots, white-necked puffbirds, toucans, magpie jays,
and red-tailed squirrels rob long-tailed manakin nests (Foster, 1976; Nadkarni and
Wheelwright, 2000). To reduce nest predation, female long-tailed manakins build nests
in trees that produce little or no fruit to limit interactions with other species
(Foster, 1976).
- Anti-predator Adaptations
- cryptic
Ecosystem Roles
Long-tailed manakins are used as a host for at least three species of chewing lice
including:
Ricinus invadens
,
Myrsidea andyolsoni
, and
Tyranniphilopterus toledo
. Of the three species identified,
Tyranniphilopterus toledo
is most common. Individuals with chewing lice are only hosts to one species at a
time, but they typically have 1 to 11 lice on the body. There have been a few recorded
cases where birds have had 28 to 35 lice on their body. A study conducted in Costa
Rica, found that out of 109 individuals examined, only 28 were hosts to chewing lice.
The females examined did not carry any eggs or lice, but lice and egg numbers increased
on progressively older males (Sychra et al., 2010). Long-tailed manakins are known
to disperse seeds of
W. solanacea
. Seeds are often found beneath male display perches (Murray, 1988).
- Ecosystem Impact
- disperses seeds
- chewing lice ( Tyranniphilopterus toledo )
- chewing lice ( Ricinus invadens )
- chewing lice ( Myrsidea andyolsoni )
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Long-tailed manakins are often sought after by bird watchers and ecotourists and bring
in revenue to local communities. Images of long-tailed manakins are often used as
mascots or logos for regions in Central America as well as environmental groups (Hernandez-Divers,
2008).
- Positive Impacts
- ecotourism
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There are no known adverse effects of Chiroxiphia linearis on humans.
Conservation Status
Long-tailed manakin populations are currently stable (BirdLife International, 2012).
Additional Links
Contributors
Dawn Marsh (author), Northern Michigan University, Alec Lindsay (editor), Northern Michigan University, Tanya Dewey (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
- Neotropical
-
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- tropical
-
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- forest
-
forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality.
- rainforest
-
rainforests, both temperate and tropical, are dominated by trees often forming a closed canopy with little light reaching the ground. Epiphytes and climbing plants are also abundant. Precipitation is typically not limiting, but may be somewhat seasonal.
- coastal
-
the nearshore aquatic habitats near a coast, or shoreline.
- riparian
-
Referring to something living or located adjacent to a waterbody (usually, but not always, a river or stream).
- estuarine
-
an area where a freshwater river meets the ocean and tidal influences result in fluctuations in salinity.
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- sexual ornamentation
-
one of the sexes (usually males) has special physical structures used in courting the other sex or fighting the same sex. For example: antlers, elongated tails, special spurs.
- polygynous
-
having more than one female as a mate at one time
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- altricial
-
young are born in a relatively underdeveloped state; they are unable to feed or care for themselves or locomote independently for a period of time after birth/hatching. In birds, naked and helpless after hatching.
- female parental care
-
parental care is carried out by females
- arboreal
-
Referring to an animal that lives in trees; tree-climbing.
- diurnal
-
- active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- sedentary
-
remains in the same area
- dominance hierarchies
-
ranking system or pecking order among members of a long-term social group, where dominance status affects access to resources or mates
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- duets
-
to jointly display, usually with sounds in a highly coordinated fashion, at the same time as one other individual of the same species, often a mate
- cryptic
-
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
- ecotourism
-
humans benefit economically by promoting tourism that focuses on the appreciation of natural areas or animals. Ecotourism implies that there are existing programs that profit from the appreciation of natural areas or animals.
- herbivore
-
An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.
- frugivore
-
an animal that mainly eats fruit
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
References
Anciaes, M., A. Peterson. 2006. Climate change effects on neotropical Manakin diversity based on ecological niche modeling.. The Condor , 108/4: 778-791.
Arévalo, ., P. Heeb. 2013. Ontogeny of Sexual Dimorphism in the Long-tailed Manakin Chiroxiphia Linearis: Long Maturation of Display Trait Morphology. The Ibis , 147.4: 697-705.
BirdLife International, 2012. "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species" (On-line). Accessed May 01, 2013 at http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/106004550/0 .
Doucet, S., G. Hill. 2009. Do Museum Specimens Accurately Represent Wild Birds? A Case Study of Carotenoid, Melanin, and Structural Colours in Long-tailed Manakins Chiroxiphia Linearis.. Journal of Avian Biology , 40/2: 146-156. Accessed January 21, 2013 at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1600-048X.2009.03763.x/full .
Doucet, S., D. McDonald, M. Foster, R. Clay. 2007. Plumage Development and Molt in Long-Tailed Manakins (chiroxiphia Linearis): Variation According to Sex and Age. The Auk , 124/1: 29-43.
Foster, M. 1977. Ecological and Nutritional Effects of Food Scarcity on a Tropical Frugivorous Bird and its Fruit Source. Ecology , 58/1: 73-85.
Foster, M. 1976. Nesting Biology of the Long-Tailed Manakin. The Wilson Bulletin , 88/3: 400-420.
Hernandez-Divers, S. 2008. Of Birds, People (and Coffee): Research and Conservation in Costa Rica. Journal of Avian Medicine and Surgery , 22/1: 59-65.
Leck, C. 1969. Observations of Birds Exploiting a Central American Fruit Tree. The Wilson Bulletin , 81: 264-269.
Macedo, R. 2010. Behavioral Ecology of Tropical Animals . London, UK: Academic Press.
McDonald, D. 1989. Correlates of male mating success in a lekking bird with male-male cooperation. Animal Behavior , 37: 1007-1022.
McDonald, D. 1989. Cooperation Under Sexual Selection: Age-Graded Changes in a Lekking Bird. The American Naturalist , 134/5: 709-730.
McDonald, D. 2007. Predicting fate from early connectivity in a social network. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America , 104/26: 10910-10914.
Murray, G. 1988. Avian Seed Dispersal of Three Neotropical Gap-Dependent Plants. Ecological Monographs , 58/4: 271-298.
Nadkarni, N., N. Wheelwright. 2000. Monteverde:Ecology and Conservation of a Tropical Cloud Forest: Ecology and Conservation of a Tropical Cloud Forest. . New York, New York: Oxford University Press.
Slud, P. 1957. The Song and Dance of the Long-Tailed Manakin, Chiroxiphia Linearis. The Auk , 74/3: 333-339.
Sychra, O., T. Najer, F. Kounek, M. Capek, I. Literak. 2010. Chewing Lice (Phthiraptera) on manakins (Passeriformes: Pipridae) from Costa Rica, with description of new species of the genus Tyranniphilopterus (Phthiraptera: Philopteridae). Parasitology Research , 106/4: 925-931.
Trainer, J., D. McDonald. 1995. Singing Performance, Frequency Matching and Courtship Success of Long-Tailed Manakins (Chiroxiphia Linearis). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology , 37/4: 249-254.
Wheelwright, N. 1985. Fruit-Size, Gape Width, and the Diets of Fruit-Eating Birds. Ecology , 66/3: 808-818.
eBird, 2012. "eBird Range Map" (On-line). Accessed February 12, 2013 at http://ebird.org/ebird/map/lotman1?neg=true&_neg=on .