COCK OF THE ROCK
Since I first opened a book with pictures of South American birds, I have always been fascinated by the iconic, scarlet red Andean Cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola peruvianus), native to the Andean cloud forests and national bird of Peru.
This bird is usually very illusive and difficult to see, and even more difficult to photograph, since it is mostly found in areas with dense vegetation and poor light conditions.
However, during a trip to the mountains of Colombia in 2018, I was lucky to get close to a group of these magnificent birds and observe their behavior – one of nature’s many wonders.
Male Cocks-of-the-rock are polygamous and have nothing to do with nesting once mating is done. The male's energy instead is devoted to very elaborate display rituals, where gatherings of males show off their magnificent plumage and compete for breeding females by performing “confrontation displays”, consisting of facing each other while bowing, jumping, and flapping their wings, sometimes even snapping their bills, and at the same time giving off various squawking and grunting calls.
When the female approaches, it becomes even more intense, and the display turns into a cacophony of bright color and a frenzied activity, filling the air with very strange sounds.
Thank you for watching 😉
