10 Exotic Birds You Need to See to Believe

To date, there are 10,000 different species of birds. Here are some magnificent ones with eye-catching plumages that you may have never heard of.

Splendid Fairywren

Also known simply as the splendid wren, or the blue wren, this passerine bird can be found much in New South Wales and southwestern Queensland. Male wrens pluck pink or purple petals and display them to attract the female wrens.

Resplendent Quetzal

This bird is believed to be the most beautiful bird in the world because of their colorful plumage. They have long tails that when taking flight from a branch, it must launch itself backwards in order to avoid ripping its tails to shred. The Quetzal, an endangered species, adorns the Guatemalan flag.

Lilac-Breasted Roller

The national bird of Kenya got their name from their impressive courtship flight. When male rollers are attracted to a female roller, they dive fast and shallowly from a considerable elevation with a rolling or fast rocking motion, accompanied by loud raucous calls.

Red-Necked Tanager

This bird has three subspecies which differ in the extent of their throat patch and in the coloration of the head. They are residents of the lowland tropical forests in Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay.

Guianan Cock-of-the-Rock

The Guianan Cock-of-the-Rock is a wonderful bird with stunning orange plumage and conspicious almost perfect rounded crest which is formed by two rows of feathers, flattened against each other. Unlike other birds, their crest is always on display.

Livingstone’s Turaco

This species of bird was named after missionary and traveler Charles Livingstone. They make up the Musophagidae family, which literally means “banana-eaters.” Yet despite the name, they generally do not eat bananas.

Spangled Cotinga

The brightly-plumaged Spangled Cotinga is a widespread Amazonian species which are usually silent, except when alarmed by predators. Males are bright torquise blue with extensive black “spangling” on the wings and back. They are different to spot from the ground because they are seen more often on dead branches emerginh from the top of tall fruiting trees.

Torquoise-Browed Motmot

This beautifully-colored bird is the national bird of El Salvador and Nicaragua. It has racket-tipped tails and weak feathers that are easily detached after development. They move their tails back and forth when they detect predators. The display is likely to indicate that the motmot is aware of the predator and is prepared to escape.

White-Throated Kingfisher

White-throated Kingfisher make their presence known by their loud calls. They are often sighted in rural areas, perching on telephone wires or other vantage points. They often dig their nests in tunnels in steep banks on the sides of streams and roads. Kingfishers hunt alone, and they basically take any small creature that they can catch and kill.

Splendid Astrapia

This is another of the 41 species of the birds-of-paradise and is only found in the mountains if New Guinea. Female astrapias are distinguished because of their brown plumage and dark head. It feeds on fruits, insects, lizards and frogs.

Red-Bearded Bee-Eater

This bird has a long tail, a long curved beak and pointed wings. They can be found in south east Asia. They mainly inhabit openings in patches of dense forest. It catches bees and other insects that are in the air. They remove the insect’s venom by hitting the insect repeatedly on a hard surface.