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| |introduction='''Marvellous Spatuletail''' is a type of [[Friend]] that appeared in the original Kemono Friends mobile game. | | |introduction=The '''Marvellous Spatuletail''' is a type of bird [[Friend]] that appeared in the original [[Kemono Friends (2015 Mobile Game)|Kemono Friends mobile game]]. |
| |reallife=The Marvellous Spatuletail (Loddigesia mirabilis) is one of the world's rarest hummingbirds that only occurs in the remote Utcubamba Valley in northern Peru.
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| Males use their spatules (= flat disks at the end of their tails) to display at leks to females (leks are gatherings of males for the purposes of competitive mating display). During this mating display, the males make snapping sounds - which originally was thought to be generated by their long spatule disks clapping together. However, it was found that even though the spatules wobble very closely together, the noise was actually coming from its mouth. During this display, the males will dance with a twig at super high speed, hopping over and over, backwards and forwards, across the twig mid-air. He is described to do so about 14 times in 7 seconds. As part of this display, the male hovers in front of the female while furiously waving his spatules about.
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| The female is responsible for building the cup-shaped nest out of plant fibers woven together and green moss on the outside for camouflage in a protected location in a shrub, bush or tree. She lines the nest with soft plant fibers, animal hair and feather down, and strengthens the structure with spider webbing and other sticky material, giving it an elastic quality to allow it to stretch to double its size as the chicks grow and need more room. The nest is typically found on a low, thin horizontal branch. The average clutch consists of two white eggs, which she incubates alone, while the male defends his territory and the flowers he feeds on. The young are born blind, immobile and without any down.
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| The Marvellous Spatuletails primarily feed on nectar taken from a variety of brightly colored, scented small flowers of trees, herbs, shrubs and epiphytes. They particularly seek out the red-flowered lily Alstroemeria (Bomarea) formosissima as well as flowers of the "mupa mupa" trees. They use their long, extendible, straw-like tongues to retrieve the nectar while hovering with their tails cocked upward as they are licking at the nectar up to 13 times per second. Sometimes they may be seen hanging on the flower while feeding.
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| They also take some small spiders and insects - important sources of protein particularly needed during the breeding season to ensure the proper development of their young. Insects are often caught in flight (hawking); snatched off leaves or branches, or are taken from spider webs. A nesting female can capture up to 2,000 insects a day.
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| Males establish feeding territories, where they aggressively chase away other males as well as large insects - such as bumblebees and hawk moths - that want to feed in their territory. They use aerial flights and intimidating displays to defend their territories.
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| |trivia=* This hummingbird was first reported in 1835 by the bird collector Andrew Matthews who worked for George Loddiges. He collected the skin of a male that became the basis for John Gould's famous monograph featuring this bird -- a portion of which artwork is shown at right. | |
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| [[Category:Needs Appearance]] [[Category:Real Animal Friends]] [[Category:Bird Friends]] [[Category:Endangered Friends]] [[Category:Nexon Game Debuts]] | | [[Category:Needs Appearance]] [[Category:Needs RL Info]] [[Category:Real Animal Friends]] [[Category:Bird Friends]] [[Category:Endangered Friends]] [[Category:Nexon Game Debuts]] |
