Fun Jamaican Tody Facts For Kids

It's said that the most beautiful gifts come in tiny packages. Behold the Jamaican tody in all its splendor with a bright green head color which changes into a bright red hue at the throat, giving it the title of robin redbreast. The birds prefer the Island of Jamaica and are more commonly found around the humid blue mountains. These birds are monomorphic as there is not much significant physical difference between the male and female birds. These birds are quiet and calm during the non-breeding period, but during the breeding phase, they may perform wing rattling movements combined with loud guttural sounds either to announce their territory to their competition or to attract the attention of prospective partners.

Did you know that this cool Jamaican todus bird bathes in dual mode-it takes a quick dive and bathes in flight, probably catching up on lost time. Secondly, you could catch it bathing in light rain or water droplets in wet leaves of plants. If you are interested in reading more about similar birds, check out toucan facts and ovenbird facts.

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What type of animal is a Jamaican tody?

The Jamaican tody (Tody todus) is a pretty chunky bird that can be found only in Jamaica.

What class of animal does a Jamaican tody belong to?

It belongs to the class Aves, and this Jamaican tody (Tody todus) bird species is one of the most attractive birds in this world.

How many Jamaican todies are there in the world?

The exact population of Jamaican todies across the world is unknown. Although this Jamaican tody (Tody todus) lives in a small range area, it meets the statistical range criterion set by the ICUN Red List of Threatened Species, and the Todus world population rate does not have a greater than 30% decrease when observed over a period of ten years.

Where does a Jamaican tody live?

The Jamaican tody species lives on islands, humid mountains, and the semi-arid coast of Jamaica.

What is a Jamaican tody's habitat?

These Todus birds of the family Todidae are endemic to the Jamaican Island and live in the humid mountain and semi-arid coast. You can search in second-growth regions of forests and untouched habitats like the arid and mesic limestone forests and shady coffee plantations or mangroves. These are the places where you can easily find this beautiful bird.

Who does the Jamaican tody live with?

You can find for them easily as they move in pairs in forests.

How long does a Jamaican Tody live?

The exact lifespan of the Jamaican tody is not available.

How do they reproduce?

Their breeding period lasts from December to July, during which the Todus birds may lay one to four eggs. The Jamaican tody eggs are white, round, and shiny and may appear slightly pinkish when they are freshly laid. The tody digs its nest in the soil. Once the birds hatch, the shells are left in the burrows, and homeless lizards, spiders, and field mice may move in.

What is their conservation status?

The ICUN Red List of Threatened Species states that this species of genus todus, the Jamaican tody todus, has been classified as the Least Concern in this world. In other words, the Todus population is not under any kind of threat of extinction in this world.

What do Jamaican todies look like?

The Jamaican tody of genus todus has popularly earned the name robin redbreast due to its unique description and prominent red throat.

How cute are they?

The Jamaican tody species are cuteness personified with a bright green head with a burst of red color on their throat, which flares into a broad, long, and flat bill. With reddish-brown legs, feet and body enveloped in blue-gray, subauricular feathers, the bird is surely a sight for sore eyes.

How do they communicate?

As they say, communication is the key to strengthening any relationship in this world. And the Jamaican tody seems to be a smart bird, although it may appear to be pretty quiet and calm during the non-breeding season. But come breeding time, you can hear tody calls everywhere in Jamaica. Then, the same quiet tody loses its cool and increases wing rattling calls for courtship and declares its territory to the other todies.

How big is a Jamaican tody?

You can call this green beauty with red throat and broadbills a chunky bird at 4.25 in (9 cm) in size. This tody of Jamaica is a member of the genus todus, comprising five species in this world. The Jamaican tody wing measurement is in the middle of its Cuban and Puerto Rican Todus cousins at 1.8 in (46 mm) with smaller wings.

How fast can a Jamaican tody move?

Their exact speed is unknown.

How much does a Jamaican tody weigh?

A tody from Jamaica may be seen eating continuously at the rate of approximately one to two insects per day but amazingly maintains its average weight at 0.0141 lb (6.4 g).

What are the male and female names of the species?

The male and female names of the species are simply male Jamaican tody and female Jamaican tody.

What would you call a baby Jamaican tody?

A chick.

What do they eat?

The diet of species todus includes insects which they find and swoop from the undersides of leaves of trees in their forest habitats of Jamaica. Occasionally they are known to eat fruits also.

Are they poisonous?

The Jamaican tody is a harmless and non-poisonous bird. Cuban tody todus species birds, including the Jamaican tody of order Coraciiformes, follow a sit and watch foraging strategy to search for their insectivores diet, including larvae and fruits.

Would they make a good pet?

If you have a coffee farm around the blue mountains of Jamaica and want to increase the quality and yield of your coffee beans by eradicating pests like the coffee berry borers, then this bird from the species todus is the right choice in your search for a pet.

Did you know...

The todus birds sit and carefully watch their prey before catching the insect and feeding on it. Come breeding time, and you can see the Jamaican birds rattle their wings and make calls with a guttural frupp sound, a harsh note made with an open bill to announce their territory. Once they have found true love, the male and female todus birds exchange dead insects, this process is called courtship feeding.

How high can they fly?

The average stats of the Jamaican tody is small, so the birds can fly in the range of 4.9-82 ft (1.5-25 m).

Are they predators?

Todus birds are good predators and prey on insects and small fruits on the underside of leaves located above the ground. Interestingly, the birds swallow the tiny insects in mid-air, but the large insects are brutally smashed against twigs before consumption.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other birds including ostrich facts and Eastern screech owl facts.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable Jamaican tody coloring pages.