Mot mots are peculiar to the new world, being found from Mexico
throughout the whole of Central America and the South American
continent. The general plumage is green, and the majority of the species
have a large racket at the end of the center tail feathers, formed by
the bird itself.
The Houton, (so called from his note,) according to Waterson, ranks high
in beauty among the birds of Demerara. This beautiful creature seems to
suppose that its beauty can be increased by trimming its tail, which
undergoes the same operation as one's hair in a barber shop, using its
own beak, which is serrated, in lieu of a pair of scissors. As soon as
its tail is fully grown, he begins about an inch from the extremity of
the two longest feathers in it and cuts away the web on both sides of
the shaft, making a gap about an inch long. Both male and female wear
their tails in this manner, which gives them a remarkable appearance
among all other birds.
To observe this bird in his native haunts, one must be in the forest
at dawn. He shuns the society of man. The thick and gloomy forests are
preferred by the Houton. In those far extending wilds, about day-break,
you hear him call in distinct and melancholy tone, "Houton, Houton!"
An observer says, "Move cautiously to the place from which the sound
proceeds, and you will see him sitting in the underwood, about a couple
of yards from the ground, his tail moving up and down every time he
articulates "Houton!"."
The Mot Mot lives on insects and berries found among the underwood, and
very rarely is seen in the lofty trees. He makes no nest, but rears his
young in a hole in the sand, generally on the side of a hill.
Mr. Osbert Salvin tells this curious anecdote: "Some years ago the
Zoological Society possessed a specimen which lived in one of the large
cages of the parrot house by itself. I have a very distinct recollection
of the bird, for I used every time I saw it to cheer it up a bit by
whistling such of its notes as I had picked up in the forests of
America. The bird always seemed to appreciate this attention, for
although it never replied, it became at once animated, hopped about the
cage, and swung its tail from side to side like the pendulum of a clock.
For a long time its tail had perfect spatules, but toward the end of its
life I noticed that the median feathers were no longer trimmed with such
precision, and on looking at its beak I noticed that from some cause or
other it did not close properly, gaped slightly at the tip, and had thus
become unfitted for removing the vanes of the feathers."