Andean cock-of-the-rock

Rupicola peruvianus · The Andean cock-of-the-rock is a large, colourful bird of the cotinga family that lives in the cloud forests of the Andes in South America.

Also called Tunki.

Andean cock-of-the-rock
Photo: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0
Andean cock-of-the-rock
Photo: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0
Andean cock-of-the-rock
Photo: Chensiyuan, CC BY-SA 4.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassAves
OrderPasseriformes
FamilyCotingidae
GenusRupicola
SpeciesRupicola peruvianus

Where it lives

Cloud forests on mountain slopes from Venezuela to Bolivia.

Fun facts

  • Males show off at communal gatherings called leks, where they challenge rivals and call to females with elaborate displays of their magnificent plumage.
  • In confrontation displays, males pair up and face each other, bowing, jumping, flapping their wings and sometimes even snapping their bills.
  • Females build the nests alone, using mud and saliva to plaster a cup-shaped nest onto cave entrances or rocky outcrops in forest ravines.
  • Males have a large disk-like crest and brilliant scarlet or orange plumage, while females are much drabber and browner.

Play it

The Andean cock-of-the-rock was the creature in Birder on November 4, 2026. Can you identify tomorrow's from its photos? Every day brings a new creature to place from kingdom to genus, map and name.

Play today's creature or replay a past daily

Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).