Wildlife of the World
Puzzle 22 · Amazonia and the Neotropics · Page 40 in print
Hoatzin Backwaters
Bacteria in the hoatzin’s enlarged crop help break down the leaves it eats; this unusual system lets the bird obtain nourishment from foliage beside South American waterways.
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Hoatzins raise their wings on a slender perch.
Species reference for Hoatzin Backwaters. The photograph does not necessarily show the population or place named in the puzzle.
Philipp Hoenle / iNaturalist (CC0) · CC0 1.0 · Original recordImage changes
Resized and converted to JPEG for display; no subject alteration.
A hoatzin's spiky crest and contrasting plumage stand out against green leaves.
Species reference for Hoatzin Backwaters. The photograph does not necessarily show the population or place named in the puzzle.
(c) desertnaturalist, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 · Original recordImage changes
Resized and converted to JPEG for display; no subject alteration.
The words
Blue Face
Hoatzins have blue facial skin and red eyes.
Branches
Hoatzins nest on branches over the water.
Canje Pheasant
In Guyana the hoatzin is called the Canje pheasant.
Discover Magazine (opens a new tab) · Stabroek News (opens a new tab)
Chicks
The young that escape by climbing or diving.
Threatened young drop into the water and swim to safety.
Clutch
Hoatzins lay two to three eggs.
Crop
The enlarged throat pouch where leaves ferment.
The hoatzin's enlarged crop holds leaf-digesting bacteria.
Fermentation
The breakdown of leaves by bacteria in its gut.
The hoatzin digests leaves by fermentation, much like cows.
Foliage
The leaves it eats.
Hoatzins are leaf-eaters.
Foregut
The front part of the gut, where it ferments leaves.
Its enlarged crop holds the bacteria.
Guyana
The hoatzin is the national bird of Guyana.
Helpers
Young hoatzins act as helpers raising the next brood.
Hoatzin
Hoatzins digest leaves with bacteria in an enlarged crop.
Legumes
Hoatzins commonly eat the leaves of tropical legumes.
Stinkbird
A nickname from its smell.
The hoatzin is known as the stink bird.
Discover Magazine (opens a new tab) · Stabroek News (opens a new tab)
Wing Claws
Young hoatzins climb with their wing claws.
Sources
- Hoatzinanimaldiversity.org
- Hoatzin Backwaters (source capture)Discover Magazine
- Hoatzin Backwaters (source capture)Stabroek News (Guyana)
- Hoatzin Backwaters (source capture)Wikipedia