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Frogmouths: Podargidae

Diet

Frogmouths are insectivores, insect eaters. Their diet includes caterpillars, beetles, and millipedes, insects with many legs. Some species eat spiders, frogs, and mice. They fly to the ground to capture food or chase after flying prey like moths.

HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT

Frogmouths rest in trees during the daytime, camouflaged by plumage that resembles the colors of the branches where they roost. The birds do not just rely on their coloring to keep them safe. Frogmouths sleep lengthwise, as if standing up. If they sense a disturbance, birds shut their eyes, stiffen their posture, and point their bills upward. Frogmouths imitate their surroundings so well that people looking directly at them think they are looking at branches.

Additional topics

Animal Life ResourceBirdsFrogmouths: Podargidae - Physical Characteristics, Diet, Behavior And Reproduction, Tawny Frogmouth (podargus Strigoides): Species Account - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE, HABITAT, FROGMOUTHS AND PEOPLE, CONSERVATION STATUS