A Mighty Mix Of Colors In Such A Tiny Body – Meet The Cuban Tody

Another great reason to visit the West Indies.

Damjan

• Published in Animals
• February 28, 2022

The Cuban Tidy is a small bird that packs a lot of punch into its tiny body. It's about the size of a small hummingbird.

A tiny, short-tailed bird with a large head and a vivid leaf-green back and head that quickly transforms to a geranium-red throat. If that wasn't enough, it also has a smidgeon of blue on each cheek. It also has a long bill that was designed specifically for collecting insects.

Todies can be found foraging insects across the island of Cuba's forests. As they follow down their prey, their wings make an unmistakable whirring sound. Even if you can't see one, you can track one down by listening.

The Cuban tody is a year-round resident of Cuba and the islands off the coast of Cuba. Based on song variety, the species appears to be divided into two populations, one for eastern and one for western Cuba. 

Like many other resident Cuban bird species, the tody is a habitat generalist.

Dry lowlands, evergreen forests, coastal vegetation, and areas near streams and rivers are all known habitats.

They often are seen in pairs. When perched, they sometimes repeat a peculiar short "tot-tot-tot-tot", but their most characteristic call is a soft "pprreeee-pprreeee" (which is the origin of its Cuban common name, 'Pedorrera'). Its wings produce a whirring sound that is used during display flights.

The Cuban Tody is a year-round resident of portions of Cuba and the islands just off the Cuban coast

Small in size (4.3 inches, 0.21 oz), with a huge head compared to body size and a thin, flat bill, this species stands out. The colour of the Cuban tody is similar to that of other todies, with an iridescent green dorsum, pale whitish-grey underparts, and red accents.

Pink flanks, red throat, yellow lores, and blue ear patch characterize this species. The bill is bicolored, with a black top and a red bottom.

It is known to live in dry lowlands, evergreen forests, coastal vegetation, and near streams and rivers

Insects are the bulk of the Cuban Tody's diet, but small fruits, small lizards, and spiders are also common. Although little is known about these birds' ecology, they have been observed in mixed-species flocks.

They are also prey used as food by predators such as mongooses and humans in impoverished places.

Nests consist of a tunnel about 12 inches long in a clay embankment although sometimes they use a rotten trunk or tree cavity.

They build nests in clay embankments, although sometimes they use a rotten trunk or tree cavity. They cover the tunnel walls and the egg chamber with a thick glue-like substance mixed with grass, lichen, algae, small feathers, and other materials.

They lay three or four eggs, and both parents incubate them.

They lay three to four eggs and they are incubated by both parents

Watch them on video here:

The West Indies is not just about beaches. These delightful birds are just wonderful beings you can encounter there.

If you want to see them in person, you can find them in Greater Antilles, Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and Hispaniola. They are worth the trip.

Damjan