Trinidad Motmot

Open encyclopedia reference

The Trinidad and Tobago motmot (Momotus bahamensis) is a colourful Coraciiform afroavian endemic to the forests and woodlands of Trinidad and Tobago. It is a nonmigratory member of the Momotidae family and the Momotus genus. This species and the blue-capped motmot, Lesson's motmot, whooping motmot, Amazonian motmot, and Andean motmot were all considered conspecific. Though found on both islands, this bird is more abundant in Tobago than it is in Trinidad. These birds are characterised by their colourful plumage, heavy bills, and low owl-like "hoot" call. Their underparts are a deep, rufous colour, with a slightly paler breast and an olive-green wash. The black eye-mask and blue-black racquet tails are also distinguishable features for this species. These birds often sit still, and in their dense forest habitat can be difficult to see, despite their size. They eat small prey such as amphibians, small mammals, insects, spiders, earthworms, lizards, small snakes and fledgling birds, and will also regularly take fruit.

Wikipedia contributors, Trinidad motmot; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:47:00.433754+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Momotus bahamensis (Swainson, 1838)

Name authority

(Swainson, 1838)

Common name

Trinidad Motmot

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Coraciiformes

Family

Momotidae

Genus

Momotus

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classAves
9. orderCoraciiformes
10. familyMomotidae
11. genusMomotus Brisson, 1760
12. speciesMomotus bahamensis (Swainson, 1838)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Momotus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 11 records assigned to Momotidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=1174595 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:8VDSX. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.