Trivia question for May-18-2011

Olivia picked today’s trivia species.  Lets see how she does:  This is the worlds only nocturnal, fruit eating bird.  They are one of the only birds with a keen sense of smell.

These birds are found in the northern areas of South America (including the island of Trinidad in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago). They are nocturnal feeders on the fruits of the Oil Palm and tropical laurels.  Their nest is a heap of droppings, usually above water – either a stream or the sea, on which 2-4 glossy white eggs are laid which soon become stained brown.

So here are Olivia’s questions:  Where do these guys spend most of the day?  Tell us what their Spanish name is and what it means?  And finally, tell us what their English name is and why they are so named?

Good Luck 😉

Answer:

Sorry we are posting the answer so late but we had two big events we were invited to attend today and I am just now getting back home.  Congratulations to Marie Zeamer Chittester again for getting the trivia answered first. And, she got all the questions answered correctly. Great job 😉 The bird we featured is the Oilbird.  The Oilbird name in Spanish is Guácharo, which means ‘the one who wails’.

The common name of the “Oilbird” comes from a grim origin: the fact that in the past chicks were captured and boiled down in order to make oil.  These guys spend their days typically hidden deep in caves.  They forage at night, navigating by echolocation in the same way as bats, but with a high-pitched clicking sound audible to humans.  here is more on these poor birds:  Oilbird

Thanks for playing along 😉