The fruit-eating Cock-of-the-rock, genus Rupicola – a cotingid bird – can be found in the northern part of South America; specifically in the tropical and subtropical rain forests close to rocky areas, where females build shallow nests with mud and plant material on the walls of rocks, hence the common name.
Just like other cotingids they have complex court behavior, performing impressive *lek displays. (*A lek is a gathering of males for the purposes of competitive mating display.)
The males are magnificent birds, not only because of their strong bright orange or reddish colors but also because of their very prominent fan-shaped crests.
The females lay one to two eggs a year. The gestation period is 28 days. The males do not participate in raising their young. Females tend to the eggs and subsequent young alone.
Species
Andean Cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola peruviana)
Guianan Cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola rupicola)
