The sooty-capped puffbird is a species of bird in the family Bucconidae, the puffbirds, nunlets, and nunbirds. It is endemic to Colombia.
Region
Chocó biogeographic region
Typical Environment
Occurs in humid lowland rainforest of western Colombia, especially along rivers and in tall primary forest. It favors shaded understory to midstory perches within dense forest and at mature forest edges. The species is most often recorded in the Atrato–San Juan basin and adjacent lowlands. While it may use secondary growth near intact forest, it depends largely on well-preserved habitat.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 600 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The sooty-capped puffbird is a quiet, perch-and-sally predator that waits motionless in shaded forest to ambush passing prey. It nests in burrows excavated in earthen banks or occasionally in arboreal termitaria. This Chocó-region endemic is sensitive to deforestation and fragmentation. Its inconspicuous habits can make it difficult to detect even where it occurs.
Temperament
solitary and secretive
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats between perches
Social Behavior
Usually encountered alone or in pairs, quietly perched for long periods in the understory. Breeding pairs excavate nesting burrows in earthen banks or sometimes use arboreal termitaria. Both sexes likely share incubation and chick-rearing duties, as in related puffbirds.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Gives soft, mournful whistled notes, often in short series delivered from a concealed perch. Vocalizations carry modestly through dense forest and are more often heard at dawn.
Plumage
Compact, large-headed puffbird with a distinctly sooty-dark crown and a contrasting pale buffy nuchal collar. Upperparts are warm brown with subtle mottling; underparts are pale buff to whitish with light dusky shading on the breast. Tail is brown with faint barring. Feathers appear soft and slightly fluffy, typical of puffbirds.
Diet
Primarily hunts large insects such as beetles, orthopterans, and caterpillars by sallying from a shaded perch. It occasionally takes small lizards or other arthropods when available. Prey is usually captured in short, direct flights and subdued by the stout bill before being swallowed.
Preferred Environment
Feeds within the lower to mid levels of mature humid forest, along quiet trails, streams, and clearings within intact canopy. Often selects perches 1–6 meters above ground with good sightlines into the understory.
