Capitonidae

Capitonidae
Black-spotted Barbet (Capito niger)
Scientific Classification
Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Class	Aves
Order	Piciformes Pici Ramphastides
Family	Capitonidae

Capitonidae or American barbets, is a family of barbets in the order Piciformes which inhabit humid forests in Central and South America. They are closely related to the toucans.

The American barbets are plump birds, with short necks and large heads. They get their name from the bristles which fringe their heavy bills. Most species are brightly colored and live in tropical forest.

American barbets are mostly arboreal birds which nest in tree holes dug by breeding pairs, laying 2–4 eggs. They eat fruit and insects. These birds do not migrate.

Ecology

While most American barbet species inhabit lowland forest, some range into montane and temperate forests as well. Most are restricted to habitats containing trees with dead wood, which are used for nesting.

The diet of barbets is mixed, with fruit being the dominant part of the diet. Small prey items are also taken, especially when nesting. Barbets are capable of shifting their diet quickly in the face of changes in food availability: Numerous species of fruiting tree and bush are visited; an individual barbet may feed on as many as 60 different species in its range. They will also visit plantations and take cultivated fruit and vegetables. Fruit is eaten whole and indigestible material such as seed pits regurgitated later (often before singing). Regurgitation does not usually happen in the nest (as happens with toucans). Like their relatives, American barbets are thought to be important agents in seed dispersal in tropical forests.

As well as taking fruit, they also take arthropod prey, gleaned from the branches and trunks of trees. A wide range of insects are taken, including ants, beetles and moths. Scorpions and centipedes are also taken, and a few species will take small vertebrates such as frogs.

Relationship with Humans

American barbets have little impact on humans. The loss of forest can have a deleterious effect on barbet species dependent on old growth, to the benefit of species that favour more disturbed or open habitat.

Three species of American barbets are listed as threatened by the IUCN: The white-mantled barbet of Colombia is listed as endangered and the five-coloured barbet as vulnerable, the two having a relatively small range threatened by deforestation for the timber industry and to create space for agriculture (including coca and marijuana) and livestock, and mining. The quite recently discovered scarlet-banded barbet of Peru is considered vulnerable due to its small population size (estimated at under a thousand birds) although its remote habitat is not immediately threatened.

Species

Genus: Capito
 Gilded Barbet (Dumont, 1816) (Capito auratus)
 Scarlet-crowned Barbet (Cuvier, 1829) (Capito aurovirens)
 Brown-chested Barbet (Chapman, 1921) (Capito brunneipectus)
 Black-girdled Barbet (Cherrie, 1916) (Capito dayi)
 White-mantled Barbet (Salvin, 1897) (Capito hypoleucus)
 Spot-crowned Barbet (Lawrence, 1861) (Capito maculicoronatus)
 Black-spotted Barbet (Statius Müller, 1776) (Capito niger)
 Five-coloured Barbet (Elliot, 1865) (Capito quinticolor)
 Orange-fronted Barbet (Salvin, 1876) (Capito squamatus)
 Scarlet-banded Barbet (O'Neill et al., 2000) (Capito wallacei)
  Sira Barbet (Seeholzer et al., 2012) (Capito wallacei fitzpatricki)
Genus: Eubucco
 Red-headed Barbet (Lafresnaye, 1845) (Eubucco bourcierii)
 Lemon-throated Barbet (Gray, 1846) (Eubucco richardsoni)
 Scarlet-hooded Barbet (Seilern, 1913) (Eubucco tucinkae)
 Versicoloured Barbet (Statius Müller, 1776) (Eubucco versicolor)