i

American , Summer 1992 A Is Laughing In The Jungle

By MichaelTennesen

t wasabout 7 a.m.when Megan Parker, a youngraptor biologist, climbed downfrom her 75-foot-high tree blind. The treeprotrudes above the jun- glecanopy in Guatemala'sTikal NationalPark which lies on the low, rolling,limestone hills near the Mexican and Belize borders. In 1990,the governmentdeclared Tikal andits adjacent territories a "biosphere." Today,its 221 squaremiles of densetropical forest, along with similarly protected zonesin adjacentparts of Mexicoand Belize, comprise the largestcontiguous protectedarea in all of CentralAmerica. Tikal NationalPark is to Guatemala what Banff National Park is to Canada or Yellowstone is to the United States. Longprotected, the wildlife within its boundaries isboth plentiful and oblivi- ousto humanintruders. Coatimundis cross the trails in troopsof 50 or more, haltingall humantraffic, while spidermonkeys climb in the treesabove. Everywhere,there are birds: OscillatedTurkeys, Red-lored Parrots, Aztec Parakeetsand toucans. It is not impossibleto goout in an afternoonand add 50 speciesof birdsto yourlife list. Parker'sspecialty is theLaughing Falcon, which she had been observing since dawn.Now, dressed in shorts,t-shirt and sneakers, she moved out of thejungle to themuddy dirt roadthat tunneledthrough the dense green foliage, and turned north.Then, shesaw a flickerof yellow. Up ahead,just aroundthe bend,near a poolof water,a LaughingFalcon dancedin the road.The is a moderate-sizedraptor with a richbrown back, buff-and-black banded tail, and a cream-coloredbreast and head. A broad, black maskcovers the eyes, narrowing as it wrapsaround the head. Its appearancehas earnedthe bird its nickname,the Lone Ranger. AsParker drew nearer, she realized that the bird wasn't dancing alone. Its dead- ly partnerwas a fer-de-lance,a pit viperwhose poison attacks the vascular system, causingmassive hemorrhaging. The 's black, gray and brown diamond pat-

Volume 46, Number 2 ß 197 leon I: Lauching In Th• Jungle

tern helpsit blend perfectlyinto enticingthe snaketo strike,like a andclamped its broad, deep, bolt- the forest leaf litter. Unlike most matador would a bull. The for-de- cutter-likebeak behind the writhing venomoussnakes whose poison lancehas poor visionbut usesan rcptilc'sneck and severed its spinal attacksthe centralnervous system, infraredeye or lorcalpit aboveits cord. the fcr-dc-lancc's victims bleed to nose to sense body heat and Becauseit feedsexclusively on death. The only hospital in this motion. But when the snake did ,the LaughingFalcon occu- ruralpart of Guatemalacan't afford not lungefor theLaughing Falcon's pies a specialniche in thisjungle to stocka supplyof the expensive cape-likewing, the raptorstarted a and enjoysa specialrelationship anti-venom required to treat the moreactive pursuit. with its people.Its feedinghabits makeit betterreceived by the locals who understandits unique ecolog- ical role. It is only oneelement of thediverse raptor community with- in thisbiosphere. In this pristinejungle, Megan Parker works for the Idaho-based PeregrineFund's Maya Projectto completeher Master'sdegree in raptor biology. Sheis energetic, enthusiastic, and devoted to her work.The project'sgoal is to inves- tigate the raptor community in thisprotected jungle tract. So far, it hasstudied the Orange-breasted Falcon, the Falcon, the Barred Forest-Falcon. the Mottled Owl, andthe Ornate -Eagle. In 1990 Parker spenther first seasonobserving the little-known birds,which are found in thetrop- ical lowlands that stretch from southern to northern . Though its English name is the Laughing Falcon, Herpetotherescachinnans is not of the genusFalco, to whichthe Pere- Displayingher characteristicmask, this adultfemale Laughing Falcon grine Falcon,Gyrfalcon, Merlin, almostdares you to look away.Photograph/Craig J. Flatten. and AmericanKestrel belong. It does not have the stiff, narrow snakebite. So, researchers either Flappingits wings,the falcon wingsof a true falconand does not carry their own or follow the cus- lifted up into the air andjumped engagein the aerial displaysfor toms of the country: "The high overthe deadlysnake, land- which Peregrinesand Gyrfalcons Guatemalanssay the remedyfor a ing on the other side.The arefamous. Instead, its wings are bite by a fer-de-lanceis to cut off turned,following its everymove. short;it usesits longaccipter-like the bitten limb with a machete," Graduallythe bird built the tempo tail to navigatethrough the dense saysParker. of the dance,jumping backand forest.Phylogenetically, it is closest But the Laughing Falconwas forth,until on thefourth pass, the to the Micrasturs--the Barred not afraidof the snake.Finding snaketurned a little too slowly. Forest-Falcon and the Collared the snakebasking on the road,the The LaughingFalcon extended a Forest- Falcon. bird spreadits wings and began to sharptalon, and with lightning The LaughingFalcon is known brush them againstthe ground, speed,pulled the snakeunder it not only for its ability to capture

198' American Birds, Summer 1992 A Falcon Is Laughing In The Jungle snakes, but also for its suite of unique calls that, in some instances,resemble a humanlaugh. Parkerand her research team study thesecalls using a recorderand directionalmicrophone. "When the birds are in the nest and undis- turbed, they havea low chuckle that sounds like ha ... ha ... ha.' When a mated pair is out hunt- ing,it usesshort laughs 'ha, ha'to locateeach other. But when they aredefending their nest, the birds usean hystericalcackle--short harshlaughs interspersed with descending laughs that are extremelyloud." Nestingbirds often greetboth dawn and dusk with a duet that startswith the femalecalling '•u- au-auuu"andthe male answering with a distinct 'Svah-koh, wah-koh, wah-koh" that builds in volume andtempo to a harmonicsong that can be heard for miles. In fact, the localname for the bird is "guaco," which in Spanishis pronounced "wah-koh." Parker'sjungle day beginsat 4 a.m. She heads out and dimbs into oneof the blindsbefore first light bringsthe jungle to life. Parkeris Withthe averageLaughing Falcon nest being 60-90 feet highin the tree, Parkerhas a nowin herthird yearof study,and hard climb in front of her. Photograph/CraigJ. Flatten. stayswith the birds from February to earlyAugust. and early March. The Laughing miniature bears. In " LaughingFalcons usually nest in Falconsproduce only one mottled, Kingdom" in 1960, the well- thejungle's tallest trees, the average reddish-brownegg. Birds in gener- known ornithologistAlexander beingabout 120-150 feet high. al tendto layfewer eggs in tropical Skutchreported studying a nestof The nestis a fairly casualmatter climateswhere the competitionfor LaughingFalcons "near the foot with epiphytes,bromeliads, and foodis greater,although one egg is of a forested ridge in southern barkproviding the substratenear not the norm. Parker thinks the CostaRica." There, he sawa tayra the top of the tree.According to LaughingFalcon may compensate attack and kill a nestlingfalcon. Parker, one nest was "simply a for the singleegg by increased He watchedas the tayraascended trampledarea of epiphytesringed parentalattention in the single the nesttree and was fairly amazed by freestandingleaves that provide young. at the bird'slack of defense."Only the only concealment,shading, Despite careful supervision, whenthe tayrawas on theverge of andprotection for the chicks." bothegg and chick are susceptible entering the hollowdid the guaco The singleegg is usuallyplaced to predatorssuch as spider mon- (LaughingFalcon) bestir herself," within the crook of a branch or keys,snakes, and tayras--mem- he wrote."Uttering a low,excited someother open cavity, and is laid bers of the weasel family that cry, [the bird] darted directly sometimebetween late February resemblepint-sized wolverines or toward the beast, but when it

Volume 46, Number 2 ß 199 MarioLima and Megan Parker banding a San Antonio Laughing nestling in 1990.Lima may take over researching theLaughing Falconwhen Parker leaves at theend of thisyear. Photograph/Craig J. Flatten.

snarledand showed its sharp white back,drawing blood. On a num- would just suckthem down like teeth,she dropped away without ber of occasions, the birds struck spaghetti."In Parker'sfirst year of havingtouched it." her head, an experience she studyshe confined her work to six But aside from Skutch's obser- remembersas a loud, unnerving nestsin primary-growth forest. vations,little was known. Many of "thud." Whatshe found was a uniquerap- Parker'sfindings have been firsts. Thefemale Laughing Falcon incu- tor which existed on a diet of 21 With over 2500 hours of observa- batesthe eggalone, and when the differentsnake . tion, Parker has found the birds chickhatches, in earlyto mid-April, Parkerobserved the Laughing very defensive.Several times she themale feeds the female and young Falconspreying on sevendifferent hasbeen attacked by both male solelyon a diet of snakes,which he species of venomous snakes-- and femalewhile climbing the oftenbrings back alive to the nest. includingcoral snakes, fer-de-lance nest trees to weigh the chicks. "I sawmales delivering five-foot- and otherpit vipers.Parker even They stooped at her head and long,one-half-inch in diametertree sawthe birds bring in three-and-a- shoulders; once, a bird raked her snakes,"says Parker, "and the female half-foot-longboas that weretwo

200- American Birds, Summer 1992 A Falcon is Laughing In The Jungle inches thick. The females would into the nest. It is not a really throughthe jungle with incredible store the snake in the crook of a gracefulsoaring bird like a kite or speed. "The fact that they can branchor overa treelimb; during a .It hasdeep wing beats. It catch this snake shows how devel- theheight of thenesting period, it really pumps." Parker saw opedtheir snake-search vision is." was not uncommon to see several LaughingFalcons bring in a num- While the chickis growing,the snakesdraped over surrounding ber of imantodes, a foot-long, malemay bring three to foursnakes branches.At feeding time, says cryptic vine snake that moves to the nesteach day, which means Parker, "The female would hold thebirds may cover a lot of territo- the snakedown againsta branch ry. Parker attached small radio andthen tear away large pieces of transmitters to several and meat until she was full." The male tracedthem through the jungle. Laughing Falconshave thick One bird covereda homerange of scaleson their feet, which Parker maybring three about 2500 hectares.Laughing thinksmay serveas shields from Falconshunt by movingthrough venomoussnakes' bites. Speed is, to four snakes theirhome range, perching at vari- perhaps,the falcon's best defense. oussites, and keyinginto move- Observing the flight of the to the nest ment around them. LaughingFalcon is difficult-- But thoughthe rural people may what Parker describes as "a flicker eachday. be awareof the presenceof these of light seenout of the cornerof birds, and evenappreciate their youreye. But I haveseen them fly songand color, few understand

Parkersettles on top of NorthAcropolis, one of the Mayanruins within Tikal, for a full day of studyingthe LaughingFalcon. Temple Fourlooms in the background,often the basesite for radiotracking the species.Photograph/Craig J. Flatten.

Volume 46, Number 2 ß Falcon Is Laughing In The Jungle

their role in the environment, or, a farmer who did not want biolo- nutrients are released into the soil moredangerously, how deforesta- gistsworking near his land, or who in the form of ash. So, the pre- tion and pesticidesare putting sawthe bird asjust anotherhawk. ferred method of agricultureis these at peril. In 1991. "Somefarmers will shootany hawk. slash-and-burn. Farmers wait until Parkermoved outside the park to They think all hawkswill attack the dry season,cut downthe trees, observe how the birds behaved in theirchickens," she says. let them dry and burn them off, areas that included a mosaic of In the provinceof Peten,where andthen plant their crops. recentlyburned fields, secondary Tikal is located, the soil is thin. For the next three-to-five sea- growth,cropland, orchards, and "You scrapeaway the leaf litter, sons, the land will be fertile. But smallislands of forest,where they and you seethere is only a thin after that, as weeds and insects encounterdangers that don't exist layer of leaf and essentiallyno build up, the fertility is dimin- inside the jungle. One male humus,"says David Whitacre,the ished, and the field will be aban- Laughing Falcon was shot and headof theMaya Project. "You get doned. If the field is allowed to found dead at the base of its nest downto mineralsoil very quickly." regenerate,eventually it will return tree. Sixteen days later, another Decompositionof the soilby jun- to primary forest, essentiallyas malebegan bringing food to the gle insectsis rapid, and the rain diverse as when it was first burned. female in the nest;the new pair leachesaway the restof the nutri- In an aboriginalsystem where remainedtogether even after the ents. humanpopulations are low, slash- nesttree was abandoned 15 days The nutrients are instead in the and-burnis a finesystem. It creates later, when the field below was forest,within the junglebiomass, a mosaicof successionalstages in burned. inside the branches, leaves, and theforest. As long as there are large Parker surmises that the dead rootsof the foresttrees, plants, and enoughtracts of primary forest, malebird mayhave been killed by epiphytes.But whenburned, these there may still be animals,such as

MeganParker holds an adultfemale Laughing Falcon at La Escuela,in Tikal.Well illustrated in this viewis the underwingpattern of this large falcon. Photograph/CraigJ. Flatten.

202 ßAmerican Birds, Summer 1992 A Falcon Is Laughing In The Jungle jaguarsand eagles. But whenpopulation densities gettoo high,the forest is cut before it matures.The soilsgrow increas- ingly infertile. Speciesdisappear. "Ninety percentof what lives in the forestin Tikal," saysWhitacre, "isnot in thepatchwork fields out- sidethe park." In March,April, andMay there is a black cloud of smoke over the entire Province of Peten as the farm- ersconvert the jungle into doomed agriculturalfields. "Sometimes the smokeis sobad they have to cancel airplaneflights, because you can't evensee," says Parker. But the LaughingFalcon seems to besurviving at leastthis stage of the onslaught."Parker's studies maybe the mostimportant that On top of TempleFour in Tikal, Parker's colleagueJulio Madrid is busyradio tracking we haveundertaken," says White- a LaughingFalcon. Photograph/Craig J. Flatten. acre."By going outside the jungle, sheis determiningjust how much Falcon. "They need treesto nest tions.To helpspread its ecological disturbancethe raptorscan with- in," saysParker, "and we don't message,the PeregrineFund has stand.It may be that thereis some know how much more disturbance been recruiting rural people to combinationof agriculturalland to the habitat these trees can with- becomeactive participants in the andprimary forest that will giveus stand.If thingskeep going the way raptor researchconducted by the the biodiversitynecessary to sup- they are, I'm afraid the country Maya Project. Parker says, "my port LaughingFalcons and other eight Guatemalancolleagues are forest creatures." great.They arecommitted to their Parker'sstudies give some cause Few understand work, theyshow real appreciation for hope. She hasobserved that for the opportunityand theygain the birdsare survivingin smaller how deforestation a lot of prestige from working areas than inside Tikal. Outside with the PeregrineFund." the park,where the forestis reced- andpesticides Parker will continue her research ing, the Laughing Falcon has through the 1992 season,after turnedaway from its junglespe- areputting which one of Parker's Guatemalan cialty and is learningto adaptto these animals colleagueswill assumethe respon- the current changes.Parker has sibility of the Laughing Falcon found that though snakeswere research. the main part of their diet, they at peril. It ishoped that the Gautemalans also hunted and . will find some of the answers that Instead of a broader hunt over a Parkerhas yet to discoverand in large, contiguousarea of jungle, could be converted into treeless the process,spread the messageof they were hunting in spots,by grazinglands. And I doubt if the ecology back to his village. lakesor wateringholes, to which Laughing Falconcould survive Ultimately,if the jungleis to sur- they returned over and over for that." vive in Guatemala, it must be their food. The PeregrineFund is currently home-grown.Only then will the Still, this will not guaranteea racingto try and answersome of Laughing Falcon have the last securefuture for the Laughing themost urgent conservation ques- laugh.ß

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