| Turacos | ||||||||||
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White-bellied Go-away Bird | ||||||||||
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| Genera | ||||||||||
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Corythaeola Tauraco Ruwenzorornis Musophaga Corythaixoides Crinifer |
The turacos, plantain eaters and go-away birds make up the bird family Musophagidae (literally banana-eaters). Traditionally, this group has been placed in the cuckoo order Cuculiformes, but Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy raises this group to a full order Musophagiformes
This is an African group of largish arboreal birds. Their flight is weak, but they run quickly through the tree canopy. They feed on fruit and some insects.
The turacos and plantain eaters are brightly coloured birds, usually blue, green or purple. The green color comes from turacoverdin, the only true green pigment in birds. (Other "greens" in bird colors result from a yellow pigment such as lypochrome combined with the prismatic blue physical structure of the feather itself.) Their wings contain a red pigment turacin. Both pigments are unique to this group. The Go away birds are mainly grey and white.
The Musophagidae build large stick nests in trees, and lay 2 or 3 eggs.
The species are: