Trinidad Motmot Momotus bahamensis with its prey

Sightings
Trinidad Motmot Momotus bahamensis with its prey was seen along the Trace Gilpin Trail of the Tobago Forest Reserve. The prey in this case is a very large spider which it had just caught. The bird was waiting till we passed before entering its nest hole in the muddy bank of the trail presumably where its young were waiting to be fed. The Main Ridge Forest Reserve of 3,958 hectares was proclaimed in 1776 when it was realised that deforestation was seriously impacting the island’s supplies of fresh water. It is thought to be the oldest protected reserve in the western hemisphere (and possibly on earth? / jc).

Species
Trinidad Motmot is a colourful bird endemic to the forests and woodlands of Trinidad and Tobago. These birds often sit still, and in their dense forest habitat can be difficult to see, despite their size. They eat small prey such as insects and lizards, and will also regularly take fruit. Like most of the Coraciiformes, motmots nest in tunnels in banks, laying about three or four white eggs.

Status and Distribution
Trinidad Motmot is a species of least concern with a stable population within a range of 11,700 square kilometres. It was previously known as Blue-crowned Motmot M. momota before this species was split into six new species in 2009.

References
BirdLife; Wikipedia; Kenefick, M., Restall, R., and Hayes, F. (2015) Birds of Trinidad and Tobago, Bloomsbury Publishing, page 170.

Photograph
Taken at close range in dark forest the bird being in deep shade with bright light on the leaves in the background. The camera settings were 1/100th second, f5.6 and ISO 6400.