The bird is probably best known for the male's unusual courting method whereby he shuffles rapidly backwards across a branch, akin to a speedy moonwalk.
The red-capped manakin is a small passerine, measuring 4 in (10 cm) in length[8][nb 1] and weighing 16 g (0.56 oz). The male is velvety black apart from a bright red head and nape, bright yellow thighs, and a pale yellow chin and wing linings.[8] The female is olive green above, with paler, more yellow-green underparts. Both sexes have dull brown legs. The male's irides are white, while those of the female and young are brown.[7]
While the adult male is distinctive, the female and youngsters can be confused with several similar species. The male golden-collared manakin is larger, and has orange (rather than brown) legs, while the female velvety manakin is a brighter green (rather than olive).[7]
Found primarily in humid forest and second growth woodland, the red-capped manakin typically occurs below 400–500 m (1,300–1,600 ft) above sea level, though it sometimes ranges as high as 900 m (3,000 ft).[7] Most are resident, but some individuals are known to migrate to take advantage of changing food resources: the number of red-capped manakins caught in mist netsatLa Selva Biological Reserve, in eastern Costa Rica, tripled in January and February, when a favored fruit ripened, for example, while the number caught at a nearby higher elevation site (where the fruits were not found) dropped to zero.[10]
The red-capped manakin is a frugivore, feeding almost exclusively on fruits. These pass very quickly through the bird's digestive system, typically taking less than 18 minutes to process.[11] Seeds from a variety of plants are consumed; one study in Costa Rica found evidence of 70 species, including those from the genera Clidemia, Hampea, Henriettea, Leandra, Miconia, Ossaea, Pinzona and Psychotria, in the fecal droppings of red-capped manakins.[12]
^Traylor, Melvin A. Jr, ed. (1979). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 8. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 278.
^Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 250. ISBN978-1-4081-2501-4.
^Ohlson, J.I.; Fjeldså, J.; Ericson, P.G.P. (2013). "Molecular phylogeny of the manakins (Aves: Passeriformes: Pipridae), with a new classification and the description of a new genus". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 69 (3): 796–804. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2013.06.024. PMID23831559.
^ abStiles, F. Gary; Skutch, Alexander F (1989). A Guide to the Birds of Costa Rica. Cornell University Press. pp. 299–300. ISBN0-8014-9600-4.
^Cramp, Stanley, ed. (1977). Handbook of the Birds of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa: Birds of the Western Palearctic, Volume 1, Ostrich to Ducks. Oxford University Press. p. 3. ISBN0-19-857358-8.
^Hilty, Steven L.; Wolf, Mimi Hoppe (2005). Birds of Tropical America: A Watcher's Introduction to Behavior, Breeding, and Diversity. University of Texas Press. pp. 89–90. ISBN0-292-70673-1.
^Loiselle, Bette A.; Blendinger, Pedro G.; Blake, John G.; Ryder, Thomas B. (2007). "Ecological Redundancy in Seed Dispersal Systems: A Comparison Between Manakins (Aves Pipridae) in Two Tropical Forests". In Dennis, Andrew J; Schupp, Eugene W; Green, Ronda J.; Westcott, David A (eds.). Seed dispersal: theory and its application in a changing world. Wallingford, UK: CABI. p. 184. ISBN978-1-84593-165-0.
Skutch, Alexander F. (1969). "Yellow-thighed manakin"(PDF). Life Histories of Central American Birds III: Families Cotingidae, Pipridae, Formicariidae, Furnariidae, Dendrocolaptidae, and Picidae. Pacific Coast Avifauna, Number 35. Berkeley, California: Cooper Ornithological Society. pp. 110–117.
