Howdy, friends. Our bird this week is one of those where it looks spectacular but I couldn’t find a ton of info about it. The white-booted racket-tail is absolutely tiny, with males weighing a mere 2.5 to 2.7 g (0.088 to 0.095 oz), and females 2.6 to 3.2 g (0.092 to 0.11 oz). Males have long double tails, about half their total body length, which have colorful “flags” at the end. Males are 11 to 15 cm (4.3 to 5.9 in) long including the 7 to 8 cm (2.8 to 3.1 in) long tail feathers. Females are 7.6 to 9 cm (3.0 to 3.5 in) long.
This bird is found in a fairly narrow band of Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela, where it lives in a variety of montane habitats. It likes humid subtropical forest edges and interiors, and also secondary forest, which is typically less dense than old growth. It feeds on a variety of plant nectars and also catches some (presumably tiny) insects on the wing. Often groups of birds will forage together, presumably to help each other to keep an eye out for threats while they feed.
The white-booted racket-tail is thought to breed year-round, and constructs a small cup-shaped nest out of twigs and lichen, positioned on a twig 6 to 8 m (20 to 30 ft) off the ground. The female incubates the pair of eggs for a little over two weeks, the chicks will fledge about three weeks later and strike out to be adorable on their own.
The racket-tail is considered “of least concern” by the IUCN. It has a large range and although its population is thought to be decreasing, this is not occurring quickly enough for the bird’s status to be reconsidered. That’s your birds for the week, folks. Be kind to yourselves and others, rest is not a reward, all my usual positive vibes to you all. Have a good weekend, everyone.
Links: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-booted_racket-tail; https://tinyurl.com/3a4bd5ub; https://tinyurl.com/4mvp2b6h; https://tinyurl.com/2rxnvx9j
