Anyone here have any first hand knowledge about bananaquits?
They are little nectar eating birds that I have had experience with in the Caribbean. On some islands they are called “sugar birds”, however there are birds called sugar birds elsewhere. The bird I am talking about is Coereba flaveola (although even the classification is somewhat controversial).
There is very little information I have been able to find after looking at hundreds of Google hits. I have also spoken to several soft-bill breeders and although they recognize the name, they know little about the bird.
I have had many species of birds over the years. I now have a possible source for a pair of bananaquits and am trying to amass as much information as possible. In particular, I am wondering if they have bred in captivity. If this is the wrong forum, I apologize.
I have quite a bit of first hand knowledge of Bananaquits in the wild. I do not know, however, if they have bred in captivity. As they seem to be a rather resilient species, I would expect that it would be possible.
Bananaquits are one of the most common and ubiquitous birds throughout Panama, and in fact through much of the New World Tropics. They are found from sea level to highlands, and in almost every habitat from scrub to rainforest (mainly in the canopy of the latter or in forest edge). They are common garden birds in cities. They eat nectar, both by visiting flowers directly and piercing the sides to rob it from the base, and also eat small berries and pick at larger fruits like bananas and oranges. They glean small insects from foliage, branches, and trunks. They will readily come to fruit feeding tables.
I have not seen nests, but regarding breeding, *A Guide to the Birds of Costa Rica * by F. Gary Stiles and Alexander Skutch has this to say:
Bananaquits traditionally were classified with the Wood Warblers, but recent genetic work suggests they are highly modified finches. The species seems to have originated in the West Indies, and is a rare example of a species that originated on an island that has colonized and spread on the mainland.
When I did my thesis research on hummingbirds, Bananaquits frequently came into hummingbird territories to rob nectar. The hummers would try to drive them out, but the Bananaquits, being bigger, were often able to hold their ground.
Gracias!
On St Martin they are so bold that they rip open sugar packets in restaurants and eat while you watch from the next table. I will know in a week or so if my source is able to get me a (presumed) pair. I have an 8’x8’ room that I have remodeled for them to occupy.
That certainly seems like ample space! I’m pretty sure I have seen them in captivity in zoos in the US and elsewhere, though I don’t know how often they have been bred. As I said, they don’t seem like the kind of bird that would be too tough, considering their general adaptability.
Okay, how about an ornithoetymology question: is the -quit ending to this bird’s name etymologically related to the -keet ending in “parakeet” and “lorikeet”?
No. I believe the term is of Jamaican origin, meaning small bird. There are also grassquits and orangequits.
Parakeet is from Middle French perroquet, a parrot. I think the -keet ending was appended to “lory” (another kind of parrot) as a diminutive to form lorikeet.
That is what I’ve read about the origin of the name.
Most of the hits are birders talking about seeing the bird, adding it to their life list etc. Next most common are Caribbean hotels/condos/etc with bananaquit in their name. After that comes discussion about “-quit” words. Then come a few aviaries that sell them when they are available. Lastly are a coupla people who own them.
Edit: hey, Risha – it took me waaay to long to get the joke. I am too close to the subject I guess!
Bummer. I had an aviary in Arkansas that was going to sell me a pair of bananaquits, but that fell through. An importer in California will sell them, but not as a pair. So I need to decide what to do. The birds are around $200 a piece, plus a little over $100 for shipping.
So, do I buy 3 birds and cross my fingers that I do not get 3 males?
Well, my luck changed. This week I found a guy who supplies zoos/aviaries with birds. Twenty four hours later (yesterday) I was at the airport picking up my DNA-sexed pair.
Here are a couple pictures. The other (bigger) bird is a European Goldfinch.
I tried to work the banana part in, but it just wasn’t working.
