MANAKINS   -   PIPRIDAE

White-ruffed Manakin Corapipo altera altera Cerro Azul, Panama province, Panama. Female. Not much to distinguish her, but the black bill & legs and the yellow belly separates from other similar species occurring there.

Club-winged Manakin Machaeropterus deliciosus Milpe Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha province, Ecuador. Male, caught in the middle of his unique display. This is one of the coolest birds in the world. No other bird is known to create pure tones with its feathers. Click here for an excellent New York Times article about how they do it.		Club-winged Manakin Machaeropterus deliciosus Milpe Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha province, Ecuador. Male. The same individual taking a break from his work.

Western Striped Manakin Machaeropterus striolatus antioquiae Reserva El Paujil, Santander department, Colombia. Male. SACC hasn't split these two yet, but the evidence is pretty strong: They look different, they sound different, and they are separated by several thousand kilometers!		Eastern Striped Manakin Machaeropterus regulus Reserve Ecologica de Guapi Assu, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. Male. The plumage differences are obvious in these photos, and click here if you want to hear the vocal differences.

Blue-crowned Manakin Lepidothrix coronata velutina Carara NP, Puntarenas province, Costa Rica. Male.		Golden-collared Manakin Manacus vitellinus vitellinus Soberania NP, Panama province, Panama. Male.

Araripe Manakin Antilophia bokermanni Arajara Park, Ceará state, Brazil. Male. One of the most amazing discoveries of recent years. Words cannot describe how cool this bird is - if you ever get a chance to see it, go for it!		Helmeted Manakin Antilophia galeata Serra da Canastra NP, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Male. Obviously a close relative of the previous, and still a pretty neat bird. Unlike the other, this is a very widespread species.

Lance-tailed Manakin Chiroxiphia lanceolata Cotumbo road, Aragua state, Venezuela. Male. All members of this genus have very similar plumage, but the elaborate breeding displays by teams of males are one of the most fascinating spectacles a neotropical birder can hope to see.		Swallow-tailed (Blue) Manakin Chiroxiphia caudata Balbina Forest, Bandeira, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Male. The close affinity of these two species is pretty obvious in these photos.

White-crowned Manakin Pipra pipra pipra Imitaca Forest (Rio Grande), Bolívar state, Venezuela. Male. The archetypical manakin!

Crimson-hooded Manakin Pipra aureola aureola Caño Colorado, Monagas state, Venezuela. Male. What a beautiful bird. He sat in the open for not much more than five seconds, but it was enough!

Band-tailed Manakin Pipra fasciicauda scarlatina Chapada dos Guimarães, Mato Gross state, Brazil. Male. Unlike other members of the genus, this species occurs in fairly dry forest as well as humid forest. Both of the birds shown here were found in semi-humid forest.

Band-tailed Manakin Pipra fasciicauda scarlatina Serra de Baturité, Ceará state, Brazil. Female. An isolated population, but thought to be the same subspecies as the male in the previous photo.

Scarlet-horned Manakin Pipra cornuta Sierra de Lema (La Escalera), Bolívar state, Venezuela. Male. A tepui endemic.

Red-capped Manakin Pipra mentalis ignifera Soberania NP, Panama. Male. Unlike most of my photos, this was taken with a small SLR and a flash.

Red-capped Manakin Pipra mentalis ignifera Soberania NP, Panama. Male. Same bird as in the previous photo, this time showing the yellow wing linings.

Golden-headed Manakin Pipra erythrocephala berlepschi Sacha Lodge, Orellana province, Ecuador. Male.

Red-headed Manakin Pipra rubrocapilla Reserva Natural Palmarí, Amazonas state, Brazil. Two males displaying side by side.

Black-capped Piprites Piprites pileata Algulhas Negras road, Itatiaia NP, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. Male. A very strange bird that has taxonomists scratching their heads. SACC removed it from the manakins and put it in the category incertae sedis (uncertain placement), though I'm keeping it in it's "traditional" place. This shot shows the white speculum clearly, indicating that it's a male. The female lacks this feature, but has faint wingbars.

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