Helmeted Manakin

The Helmeted Manakin (Antilophia galeata) is a small species of bird in the Pipridae family, the manakins. It is found in the cerrado and pantanal of Brazil; also northeast Paraguay, and a border region of northeast Bolivia. Unlike most other manakins, it does not occur in regions with humid primary forest (e.g., the Amazon), but is found in various types of forest and woodland in semi-humid or fairly arid regions, but commonly near water. Until 1998 when the far rarer Araripe Manakin was described, the Helmeted Manakin was the only member of the genus Antilophia.

The Helmeted Manakin is a sexually dimorphic species with the male being a black bird with a red crest; the female is a dull olivish green, with a reduced olive crest. Both sexes have a long tail for a manakin. Unlike many other manakins, the males do not form leks, but have their own territory.