The following list of bird species, compiled with the help of specialists, represents some of the most frequently observed species in the Pantanal of Mato Grosso.
These bird species of the Mato Grosso Pantanal are identified by their common names, followed by their scientific nomenclature and identification in English.
Popular names, often inherited from indigenous peoples, are very important because they can describe the characteristics of the birds.
The scientific names of the birds, in Latin, classify them according to genus and species, making it easier to see the similarities between them.
Finally, we have chosen to include the names in English as well, to help those interested in birdwatching identify them in foreign field guides.
Aves no Pantanal Matogrossense
Most common bird species in the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul
- Hyacinthine Macaw, Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus or Hyacinth Macaw
- Scarlet Macaw, Ara chloroptera or Green-winged Macaw
- Great Hornbill, Phalacrocorax olivaceus or Neotropical Cormorant
- biguatinga, anhina anhinga or anhinga
- Mycteria americana or Wood Stork
- Jacana jacana or Wattled Jacana
- Platalea Ajaja or Roseata Spoonbill
- Curicaca, Theristicus caudatus or Buff-necked Ibis
- Rhea, American or greater Rhea
- Black-collared Falcon, Busarellus nigricollis or Black-collared Falcon
- Black-backed Kingfisher, Syrigma sibilatrix or Whistling Heron
- Great Kingfisher, Ceryle torquata or Ringed Kingfisher
- Bullfinch, Tigrisoma lineatum or Rufous Tiger-Heron
- Toucan, Rhamphastos toco or Toco Toucan
- Tuiuiú, Jaburu, Mycteria americana or Jabiru
1. Hyacinthine Macaw
(Anodorhynchus Hyacinthinus)
English name: Hyacinthine Macaw
This charming bird is the largest of the planet’s psittaciformes, a family that includes macaws, parrots, maritacas and parakeets in general. It measures up to 1 metre from head to tail and weighs 1.5 kilos.
The species, which feeds mainly on acuri and bocaiuva coconuts, was on the verge of extinction due to the intense illegal wildlife trade.
Populations are sedentary, but may make small daily migrations to feed or breed.
With a wing span of 36 centimetres, the Hyacinthine Macaw can make long flights of up to 25 kilometres and high flights of up to 100 metres.
Its colour is predominantly cobalt blue, in a gradient from the head to the tip of the tail, while the yellow of the skin appears around the eyes and on the outline of the lower jaw.
The underside of the wings and tail feathers are black, which explains its other popular names: black macaw and araraúna (in Tupi-Guarani it means ‘black-coloured’).
Curious, this bird often flies close to cars or boats, making its characteristic calls that can be heard from afar.
During the breeding season, from July to December, pairs become isolated and can be aggressive.
In the Pantanal, Hyacinthine Macaws build their nests in cavities in the trunks of manduvi trees.
In 2006 they were on Ibama’s list of endangered species.
2. Scarlet Macaw
(Ara chloroptera)
English name: Green-winged Macaw
Unlike the Hyacinthine Macaw, the Scarlet Macaw does not fly in flocks; it is usually seen in pairs and is easy to spot because of its abundant plumage, which, as the name suggests, is predominantly red.
The skin of the Scarlet Macaw’s face is white with some red streaks, and the wing feathers are almost all dark blue with green stripes. The long red tail ends in a shade of blue.
Because of its size – it can reach up to 95 centimetres – this bird needs large cavities in which to nest.
It therefore uses the natural cavities of tall trees (many use the nests of Hyacinthine Macaws) or rock faces.
Hunting pressure has driven it to extinction in parts of the Atlantic Forest in south-eastern Brazil, where it was once common.
In the Pantanal of Mato Grosso, the scarlet macaw can be seen between May and December, during its breeding season.
3. Biguá
(Phalacrocorax olivaceus)
English name: Neotropical Cormorant
A distant relative of the pelican, this dark-coloured bird measures between 58 and 73 centimetres.
An excellent fisherman, the anteater has a peculiar way of catching fish: it hooks them in flocks, in a kind of collective fishing expedition.
When it’s engaged in this activity, it dives to depths of up to 20 metres.
Its feet and beak are essential for hunting and catching prey.
As it loses much of the impermeability of its feathers when it comes into contact with water, it is common to see it repeatedly flapping its wings to dry them, even while swimming, or opening them to the sun when it lands on logs and trees on the banks of rivers and bays.
In the mornings, when cormorants go out in search of their favourite food, they fly in groups, forming a long ‘V’ in the sky. They usually nest in large colonies together with herons.
4. Anhinga
(Anhinga anhinga)
English name: Anhinga
A long-necked bird with a long, pointed bill, the Anhinga has an unmistakable silhouette, even when flying at high altitudes.
The species has a pronounced sexual dimorphism: the male is entirely black and the female has a pale, yellowish-brown neck.
Only during the breeding season, between September and December, do these birds live in pairs.
Measuring between 81 and 91 centimetres, the biguatinga is a skilled diver and can easily catch fish.
A solitary fisherman, the biguatinga stays close to the banks of rivers, bays and corixos, using its bill like a harpoon: underwater it pierces the fish and then emerges with the game.
Like the biguá, the biguatinga’s feathers get wet easily. To dry them, or to get rid of excess heat on very hot days, they perch on tall, dry trees with their wings spread.
5. Powdery mildew
(Mycteria americana)
English name: Wood Stork
When they leave the nest, dry-headed chicks have their necks and heads covered with feathers.
As they grow, dry-headed chicks lose this characteristic and by the age of three have plucked these parts of their body – hence their popular name.
At the age of four, dry-headed storks become sexually mature and form large colonies in the Pantanal nesting grounds to breed.
The smallest of the three species of storks found in Brazil, it grows to a length of 95 centimetres and can be found alone or in groups in flooded areas on the banks of rivers and bays.
At low tide, the bird swims against the current, holding its pincer-like beak half in the water: it’s a strategy to catch fish carried by the current.
6. Coffee tree
(Jacana jacana)
English name: Wattled Jacana
One of the most common species in the Pantanal, the cafezinho is black and deep rusty brown, which explains its popular name, with a yellow bill and red front and side membranes.
The cafezinho is about 23 centimetres long, and with its long legs, long toes and thin claws, up to 4 centimetres long, it can walk on the surface of the water, supported only by floating leaves and grass.
The adult female is heavier than the male: up to 159 grams compared to 69 grams for the pair.
Also known as the jaçanã, the cafezinho feeds on insects, molluscs, seeds and small fish.
Females are aggressive, defending their territory even against other coffeebirds, while males look after their young.
Alert, this bird has a habit of signalling changes in the environment – such as the presence of predators or people.
7. Spoonbill
(Platalea ajaja)
English name: Roseata Spoonbill
Its popular name, Spoonbill, comes from one of its most striking physical features: its spoon-shaped bill, which starts straight and ends in a broad, rounded tip.
The Spoonbill is adapted to catch small animals such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic insects. The beak of the spoonbill is equipped with nerve endings that detect the movement of prey in the water.
The bird, which can reach 87 centimetres in length, is also remarkable for the beauty of its pink plumage, due to the carotenoids (pigments) in its diet.
During the dry season, the spoonbill can often be seen on the beaches in the late afternoon, along with cormorants, herons and black-headed godwits.
From November, their presence on the Pantanal plain diminishes as the spoonbill migrates to less rainy areas.
8. Curicaca
(Theristicus caudatus)
English name: Buff-necked Ibis
It’s difficult to see a curicaca in the water.
In small groups, the curicaca often roams fields, the edges of swamps and even burned areas.
With its long, curved bill, adapted to catch small snails, insects, amphibians or snakes that circulate in shallow water, it extracts insect larvae from soft earth or mud.
In addition to this characteristic, the curicaca is easily recognised by its pale colouring, with a pale grey back and greenish shimmer.
The male, which can reach a length of 69 centimetres and a wingspan of 43 centimetres, is usually slightly larger than the female.
Outside the breeding season, which lasts from September to December, they live in groups of eight to ten birds.
At dusk, before they go to sleep, and at dawn, also in groups, curicacas gather on the tops of palm trees on farms and make a noise.
9. American eel
(Rhea americana)
English name: Greater Rhea
Brazil’s heaviest bird, the rhea can grow to 1.40 metres and weigh up to 34 kilos.
When running, the rhea can reach speeds of 60 kilometres per hour – second only to the ostrich, its African relative, which can reach 80 kilometres per hour.
Emus were heavily hunted until the late 1960s because their feathers were used to make feather dusters and ornaments.
They have also lost much of their habitat to agriculture.
Able to survive prolonged droughts, their diet consists of grasses, legumes, fruits, seeds and small animals such as snakes, frogs, lizards and insects.
During the breeding season, males form harems of up to nine females. They prepare the nest where their partner lays the eggs.
The males then hatch them while the females move on to another harem.
At fifteen days old, rhea cubs are already half a metre tall.
10. Sparrowhawk
(Busarellus nigricollis)
English name: Black-collared Falcon
of the Pantanal. The Hawk Eagle is also known as the Old Eagle, Wash Eagle or Grandfather Eagle.
It is about 50 centimetres long and has reddish brown plumage with orange underparts, a black beak and a dark stripe on its neck. It has long, broad wings and a short tail.
It’s easiest to spot when it’s perched: its white head can be seen from afar – hence some of the names given to it by the inhabitants of the Pantanal.
The Hawk Eagle can spend hours perched in trees on the banks of rivers and bays, waiting for a movement in the water; if it senses the presence of a fish on the surface, it will swoop down and catch it with its long, curved, clawed feet.
Fish is the hawk eagle’s favourite food, but it also eats insects and molluscs.
Today, the hawk eagle is almost extinct in southeastern Brazil.
11. Red-headed Cowberry
(Syrigma sibilatrix)
English name: Whistling Heron
Around 53 centimetres long, they usually live in pairs and are often seen in the open savannahs and cleared fields that form during periods of drought.
With its blue face and pinkish beak, greyish colouring and pale breast and belly, the maria-faceira is distinguished by its elegant, slow gait as it hunts insects – part of a diet that also includes frogs, small lizards and water snakes.
The maria-faceira has reddish wingtips with dark grey underparts and black legs. This bird usually stays on the ground, and only in the late afternoon does it choose tall trees to land and spend the night, where it usually also makes its nest.
They usually live in dry fields or slightly flooded areas. Unlike other heron species, they don’t form colonies: each pair builds its own isolated nest high up in trees with a dense canopy.
Their melodious song is high and long.
12. Kingfisher
(Ceryle torquata)
English name: Ringed Kingfisher
Five of the 84 species of kingfisher live in Brazil.
The best known is the one popularly known as the “big kingfisher” or “matraca”, due to its size (an average of 42 centimetres) and the fact that it is very noisy: its song exactly resembles the noise of the “matraca” (used as a liturgical instrument, in place of the bell, in Holy Week demonstrations).
The Great Kingfisher is usually seen at the water’s edge, looking for small fish and insects.
Perched on branches, the Great Kingfisher takes off in sharp, often vertical flights as soon as it identifies its prey.
The bird also hovers in the air to find food and hook it with its beak, which can be up to 8 centimetres long. The species is characterised by bluish-grey plumage on the back and top of the head, a white throat collar and a reddish belly.
Kingfishers are known for their song in flight and for nesting in burrows they build in river canyons or bays.
13. Socó boi
(Tigrisoma lineatum)
English name: Rufous Tiger-Heron
The Bullfinch is a large bird that can grow to 76 centimetres. It got its popular name because its typical long, loud song is reminiscent of the bellowing of an ox.
During the breeding season, this sound becomes very deep and can be compared to the roar of a jaguar.
The socó-boi, which feeds on small fish, aquatic insects and crustaceans, has the ability to hunt amphibians and even anacondas.
When it feels threatened, it stands still, stretches its neck, points its beak upwards and swings its tail.
A solitary bird with a crepuscular habit, it maintains this behaviour when nesting – couples prefer to isolate themselves rather than form colonies. It doesn’t acquire its adult plumage until it is two years old.
Juveniles have a brown body with black stripes, giving them perfect camouflage. A suspicious bird, it hides in the vegetation along the riverbanks, but will stand motionless at the water’s edge if surprised.
14. Hooded Toucan
(Ramphastos toco)
English name: Toco Toucan
At 56 centimetres long – 20 centimetres in the beak alone – the toucanuçu is the largest known species of toucan.
The toucanuçu doesn’t just live in the forest: it ventures out into the open countryside. Its huge beak in bright yellow, orange and red, with a black tip, looks heavy, but its bone structure is not massive, making it light and easy to fly.
Adapted to picking and peeling fruit, the toucanuçu uses its beak to intimidate other animals and attract females during the mating ritual.
During the breeding season, from July to December, toucans are seen in pairs.
During this time, the toucanuçu usually visits bird nests to prey on eggs or chicks. When the chicks leave the nest – 45 days after hatching – they join the flock.
The bird is not yet endangered, but its capture for trade has reduced the population, threatening the genetic variability of the species.
15. Tuiuiú or Jaburu
(Jabiru mycteria)
English name: Jabiru
The bird with the largest wingspan in the region (2.80 metres) and one of the largest in South America, it is 1.60 metres tall and weighs 8 kilos.
Its thick, pointed bill can measure up to 30 centimetres in length.
Another curiosity about the Tuiuiú or Jaburu is the size of its nest. The nest is built on manduvis and piúvas, or on dry logs: every year new material is added to the structure, which is almost 2 metres in diameter and 70 centimetres high, as the nests are reused.
Tuiuiú or jaburu couples stay together during the breeding season, when the red skin on their chests is accentuated by increased blood flow.
The breeding season of the Tuiuiú or Jaburu coincides with low water – a time when feeding is easy as the fish are trapped in small flooded areas.
With its great ability to fly, the Tuiuiú soars to high altitudes, the white plumage of its wings and tail and the black of its beak, head and feet standing out against the sky.
See the following publications on the Pantanal
- Mammal and reptile watching in the Pantanal
- Fishing in the Pantanal – Best places, lures, methods and seasons
- Most common fish species in the Pantanal
- Birdwatching in the Mato Grosso Pantanal
- Most common bird species in the Mato Grosso Pantanal
- Flora of the Mato Grosso Pantanal
- Fauna of the Mato Grosso Pantanal
- Pantanal of Mato Grosso – Geography, climate, soil and rivers
- History of the Mato Grosso Pantanal – Discovery and economic development
- Southern Pantanal Region
- Northern Pantanal Region
- Why visit the Pantanal in Mato Grosso?
