Which of these birds is poisonous?

The hooded pitohui, or Pitohui dichrous, is a beautiful but poisonous bird. It is the first poisonous bird to be officially documented in the scientific literature. It is about the size of a dove, averaging about nine inches in length, with black feathers on the head and an orange or red belly. They are members of the family Corvidae (as are crows and ravens) and they are passerines or songbirds. They have sharp claws on their black legs, and a strong, black beak.

The bright colors of the hooded pitohui, along with a strong odor that it emits, are thought to be aposematic or meant to ward off predators.

The hooded pitohui inhabits the rainforests and tropical jungles of New Guinea, which is an island located north of Australia. It inhabits the forests from the lower lands to sea level.

More Info: study.com

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76 Comments

dexteratilano

The skin and feathers of some pitohuis, especially the variable and hooded pitohuis, contain powerful neurotoxic alkaloids of the batrachotoxin group (also secreted by the Colombian poison dart frogs, genus Phyllobates). These are believed to serve the birds as a chemical defence, either against ectoparasites or against visually guided predators such as snakes, raptors or humans.The birds probably do not produce batrachotoxin themselves. The toxins most likely come from the beetle genus Choresine, part of the birds' diets. Hope this answers the question for those who were curious.

littlekitchenmiracles

Ditto with Darlene! Is it’s bite poisonous? Is it poisonous to eat?

Denise Currie

These birds feathers and skin contain the exact same poison as the Poison Dart Frog. Coming into contact with them, especially if scratched or bitten will cause numbness and tingling and other minor irritations. Eating this bird would cause paralysis and sometimes death though local tribes eat them but rub them with charcoal first and allow that to penetrate before cooking. It is thought that they obtain the poison from external sources like the Choresine Beetle which is their main food source.. The above information I got from an on-line page called Wildfacts. I didn't get the answer from there I knew the answer after seeing these on a David Attenborough programme a while ago but didn't retain all the aforementioned information

Cari G.

You've got to figure any bird that wears a hood is hiding something....lol

Boyd Tracy

Darlene Davidson -No species of bird is known to actively inject or even produce venom, but some birds are known to be poisonous to touch or eat. These birds usually sequester poisons from animals and plants that they feed on, commonly from poisonous insects. The pitohui, the ifrita, and the rufous or little shrikethrush sequester batrachotoxin in their skin and feathers.[1]

Chrissy Krainock Luders

They are poisonous to eat or touch them. They do not have venom. A neurotoxin called homobatrachotoxin found in the birds skin and feathers, causes numbness and tingling in those touching the bird

Michelle Mitchell

It’s poisonous to eat or touch.Darlene Davidson,

Eve

. A neurotoxin called homobatrachotoxin found in the birds' skin and feathers, causes numbness and tingling in those touching the bird.

Effren Hernandez

Due to their toxicity, Papua New Guineans call the pitohuis rubbish birds as they are not good for eating; in desperate times, though, they can be consumed but only after the feathers and skin are removed and the flesh is coated in charcoal and then roasted.

Lena Sands

In the case of the pitohui, they sequester the batrachotoxin from the plants that they eat in their skin and feathers- this makes them poisonous to touch.