The Green Aracari, one of the smallest toucan species, has bright plumage and a colorful bill. Found in lowland forests in southeast South America, the Green Aracari forages for fruits, including figs and palm fruits, in small groups or in pairs, clinging to hanging fruits and even occasionally reaching for them from an upside-down position. This species is not globally threatened.

Green Woodhoopoes are very social and extremely curious about their environment – known to probe their long, curved, bright red bill into cracks and crevices in search of insects. They use their bill to pry apart bark and buds, gaining access to the food within. 

Woodhoopoes all have striking iridescent green, blue, and purple plumage, long curved bills, and long tailfeathers. When they fly, they have two or three bright white stripes on their wings. 

In total, there are four species of Woodpoes, and an additional four species of closely-related Scimtarbills, all in the “Phoeniculidae” family.

The Green-winged Dove, also called the Asian Emerald Dove or the Grey-capped Emerald Dove, is found in a wide range of forest types, including rainforests, mangroves, and bamboo forests, throughout Southeast Asia. It primarily eats seeds and fallen fruits on the forest floor, but occasionally eats insects including termites and snails, and can sometimes be found on farmyards feeding alongside pigs and domestic fowl. The Green-winged Dove is not globally threatened, but predation by rats and feral cats poses a danger.

The Green-winged Macaw (also called the Red-and-green Macaw) is a large parrot, second only to the Hyacinth Macaw in size. This species range is also large, spanning eastern Panama to Paraguay. The Green-winged Macaw’s band of green feathers on its wings and the presence of fine, tiny red feathers on its white face distinguish it from the similar Scarlet Macaw. It has an extremely powerful bill, which it uses to easily crack open hard-shelled nuts like Brazil nuts. Unlike many parrot species, Green-winged Macaws are not great imitators. Although not globally threatened, the Green-winged Macaw is generally uncommon, with pairs frequently solitary and dispersed. This species has a shrinking range, with population declines at the edges of its range.

The Grosbeak Starling, also known as the Finch-billed Myna, is endemic to the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia where it inhabits forest edge and open woodlands. It is also very common in modified habitats such as plantations. The Grosbeak Starling often forages in large groups with other Grosbeak Starlings high in the canopy where it consumes fruits, seeds, insects, and nectar. This species is highly gregarious and also nests colonially. The Grosbeak Starling population in Sulawesi is very seriously impacted by the removal of large remnant trees often used for nesting following logging or land clearing for cultivation. In addition to their attractiveness for the pet trade, some Grosbeak Starlings are killed because of a case of mistaken identity—they are mistaken for a local agricultural pest species, the Short-tailed Starling.

The Guam Kingfisher is small by kingfisher standards. Males average only about 58g (two ounces) and 24 cm (9 inches) long, making them less than half the size of North America’s Belted Kingfisher. Both male and female Guam Kingfishers have an iridescent blue-green back, a disproportionately very large, slightly crested, rust-colored head, and a long, stout, pointed bill. Males have cinnamon-colored underparts, while the underparts of females and juveniles are whitish.

After World War II, the accidental introduction of brown tree snakes (Boiga irregularis) to Guam resulted in the extinction of nearly all of the island’s dozen species of native land bird by the late 1970’s. Biologists realized that drastic action was needed if there was going to be any hope of saving what was left of Guam’s native birds. In 1984, when the Guam Kingfisher received “Endangered” status from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, fewer than 50 were estimated to remain in the wild. Twenty-one of these were captured and transported to U.S. zoos; eight more birds were imported in 1986. The last sighting of a Guam Kingfisher in the wild was in 1988.

Encouragingly, the population of Guam Rails in human care has continued to grow. The world’s population of Guam Kingfishers, and the future of the species is in the hands of zoological institutions, including the National Aviary, which is proud to participate in and contribute to the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP) for the Guam Kingfisher.

The Guam Rail is a small, ground-dwelling bird, inhabiting forests, mixed woodland and scrub, fern thickets, and grasslands. They move quickly through thickets and grasses. It is most active at dawn and dusk.

In the late 1980s, the presence of an invasive species, the brown tree-snake threatened the survival of bird species on the island of Guam. The Guam Rail was nearly driven to extinction, but biologists managed to rescue the remaining rails and bring them into human care. The species was listed as Extinct in the Wild for over 30 years. Careful coordination between zoos helped this species survive and breed in human care. Gradually, the species was released on the islands of Rota and Cocos near Guam, where released birds themselves have since successfully reproduced! In 2019, the Guam Rail became only the second bird species ever to be upgraded from “Extinct in the Wild” to “Critically Endangered.”

The National Aviary played a vital role in the reintroduction of Guam Rails. More Guam Rails have hatched at the National Aviary than at any other North American zoo. Read more about the remarkable recovery of this Critically Endangered species!

The shimmery feathers of the Hadada Ibis isn’t the only attention-grabbing feature of this bird: its loud call can be heard echoing through the Wetlands! Hadada Ibises are found in sub-Saharan Africa in a variety of habitats and often in close proximity to humans. This medium-sized ibis uses its long, curved beak to probe the ground for insects and the occasional small frog or reptile. Their populations are not globally threatened and in fact may even be increasing with the spread of agricultural development and irrigated land.

Harris’s Hawks are a deep chestnut brown with yellow markings that make them stand out. They are a very social species, and have been observed raising young and hunting—an unusual trait for a raptor species! While on the hunt, a group of Harris’s Hawks will descend on their prey and flush it. Harris’s Hawks can be found throughout Mexico and parts of the southern United States.

The Hooded Merganser is a showy diving duck with a distinctive head crest and bright eyes. The smallest of the three merganser species found in North America, the Hooded Merganser is found throughout most of the continental United States and southern Canada. The serrated edge and hooked tip of its bill helps the Hooded Merganser seize its prey, and its eyes are adapted to help it see underwater. Sometimes other duck species will lay their eggs in Hooded Merganser nests, a breeding strategy called “nest parasitism.” Hooded Mergansers, too, will lay their eggs in other bird’s nests. This species is not threatened but can be vulnerable to pesticides and contaminants and habitat degradation.

The Critically Endangered Hooded Vulture is a rather small, brown vulture, native to Sub-Saharan Africa. This species mainly occupies open woodland and savanna, but also forest edge, where if feeds on carrion and human food scraps. Unlike other vultures which mostly construct their nests on cliffs or buildings, the Hooded Vulture makes a stick nest deep within the foliage of a tree. Being smaller than the other African vultures, Hooded Vultures can rise on warm thermal air currents more quickly and so is often the first one to sight a carcass.  Vultures can remain in the air for hours, soaring gracefully with their long, broad wings on the thermals. This vulture is Critically Endangered as the result of the widespread loss of nesting trees, hunting of the vultures for food or medicine, poisoning at carcasses, and avian influenza.

The Hyacinth Macaw is a beautiful inhabitant of várzea, savanna, palm-savannas, and similar habitats adjacent to tropical forests in central and eastern South America. These intelligent and social birds are sometimes known as “gentle giants” for their gentle personalities and their large size. They are the largest macaw species, with strong beaks to match: some Hyacinth Macaws have beaks strong enough to crack open a coconut! They are especially adept at opening notoriously tough palm nuts. In response, palm trees have evolved to produce harder and harder nuts, but Hyacinth Macaws are evolving bigger beaks with each generation. Like all parrots, Hyacinth Macaws are great imitators and can mimic human speech. Fewer than 6,500 Hyacinth Macaws remain in the wild, as the species is vulnerable to the illegal pet trade, habitat loss, and hunting.

The National Aviary’s Tropical Rainforest habitat is home to two female Hyacinth Macaws, Jewel, seen on the left, and Sapphira, seen on the right.  Both Jewel and Sapphira arrived at the National Aviary in 2018 and have been getting to know each other in their shared space above the waterfall, now featuring multiple new perching areas for them to explore as they bond. Their expert care team has been observing the two closely and are delighted to see positive signs of a social bond being built between them.