The keel-billed motmot is a Vulnerable species of bird in the motmot family Momotidae. It is found in Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua.
Region
Central America and southern Mexico
Typical Environment
Occurs on the Caribbean/Atlantic slope from southeastern Mexico through Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, and Nicaragua to northern Costa Rica. It inhabits mature and well-shaded evergreen and moist foothill forests, often near ravines and along streams. The species favors dense understory and midstory perches where it can sally for prey. It tolerates lightly disturbed forest and edges but generally avoids open habitats and heavily logged areas. Local presence is patchy where continuous forest has been fragmented.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1300 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The keel-billed motmot is a shy understory bird of humid forests and is unusual among motmots in lacking the typical racket-tipped tail. Its thick, high-keeled bill gives the species its name and helps it handle large insect prey. It nests in burrows excavated into earthen banks, a hallmark of the motmot family.
Temperament
secretive and quiet
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats between shaded perches
Social Behavior
Usually solitary or found in pairs within dense forest. Pairs excavate long burrows in earthen banks for nesting, with both sexes participating in digging and incubation. Territorial during the breeding season and often remain faithful to favored perches along forested ravines.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Gives low, hollow hoots and soft whoo notes, often delivered singly or in slow sequences. Calls carry through dense forest but are subdued and can be easily overlooked.
Plumage
Mostly rich green with warmer rufous tones on the throat/chin and a darker mask through the eye; wings and tail show bluish to turquoise highlights. Feathers are smooth and satiny, with minimal streaking. Tail is long and straight-edged, lacking the racket tips typical of many motmots.
Diet
Primarily eats large insects such as beetles, katydids, and caterpillars, supplemented by spiders and other arthropods. It occasionally takes small vertebrates like lizards or frogs. Fruit is also consumed seasonally, especially when insect prey is less abundant. Prey is often beaten against a perch before swallowing.
Preferred Environment
Forages from shaded perches in the understory and midstory of mature humid forests, frequently near streams and gullies. Will use edges and semi-open clearings within forest but stays close to cover.
