

Manakins 621 



THE MANAKINS 



(Family Pipridce) 



The Manakins, or Pipras, have often been placed with the Cotingas, but 

 there seem to be sufficient reasons why they should be kept distinct. They 

 have, for instance, exaspidean tarsi, in which respect they favor the Tyrant- 

 birds, while the outer and middle toes are connected for a distance of two joints, 

 or to a greater degree than in the Cotingas. They are for the most part thick-set 

 birds of very small size, with rather slender legs and feet, and a short bill, broad 

 at base, but with the upper mandible overhanging and notched behind the tip. 

 In the normal forms the tail is short and squared, while in others the tail, and 

 the wings as well, are subject to very extraordinary modification; a few are 

 crested. In the typical section of the family the sexes are very different in 

 coloration, the males exhibiting very brilliant combinations of blue, scarlet, 

 yellow, or orange with velvety black, chestnut, olive-green, or black and white, 

 while in the other section the sexes are alike or nearly so and of dull coloration. 



The Manakins are all natives of the New World, being most abundant in 

 Guiana, Venezuela, and Brazil, while a few range as far north as Central America 

 and southern Mexico, and others south to Paraguay and extreme northern 

 Argentina. They inhabit for the most part the dense forests, keeping much 

 to the lower growth of thick bushes, especially along marshes and streams, 

 and usually going about in small parties. In their habits they are said to some- 

 what resemble our Tits and Chickadees, hopping about the branches in search 

 of their food, which consists very largely of fruits, berries, and seeds, with occa- 

 sional insects. On account of the peculiar modification of the feathers of the 

 wings, as above alluded to, some species make a very curious and often loud 

 noise. Thus of a common Manakin (Manacus candai] of Nicaragua, Dr. Rich- 

 mond says, "When flying the birds make a buzzing with the wings, and in 

 alighting often make a noise similar to the cracking of a small twig or of a 

 Peccary gnashing its teeth." The nesting habits appear to be various, the nest 

 in some cases being placed on the ground, but for the most part it is suspended 

 from the fork of a branch. A nest of the Lance-tailed Manakin (Chiroxiphia 

 lanceolata), found by Lieutenant Robinson on Margarita Island, Venezuela, "was 

 suspended in a fork of a stinging nettle, about five feet from the ground, and was 

 so very shallow that I wondered why the eggs were not thrown out by the gentlest 

 breeze. It contained two eggs, one addled and one on the point of hatching. 

 They were large for the size of the bird and resembled the eggs of our Redbird 

 (Cardinalis)." 



This family numbers about eighty species, disposed as at present accepted 

 among nineteen genera. In Pipra, the typical and largest genus (twenty-three 

 species), the tail is short and squared and the wings of the males of normal shape ; 

 all are small birds, the smallest being only two and eight tenths inches in length, 

 and the largest but four and a half inches long. The males are of exceedingly 

 brilliant coloration. Thus the Aureole Manakin (P. aureola) is black above 



