HUMMINGBIRDS   -   TROCHILIDAE   -   PART VIII

Many-spotted Hummingbird Taphrospilus hypostictus WildSumaco, Napo Province, Ecuador. Ranges in Andean east slope cloudforest from Ecuador to Bolivia. (S7)

White-throated Hummingbird Leucochloris albicollis Vale das Taquaras Lodge, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. (S7)

Buffy Hummingbird Leucippus fallax Perico, La Guajira department, Colombia. A rather drab hummer of dry habitats in northern Colombia and northern Venezuela. (S6)

Tumbes Hummingbird Leucippus baeri Chaparri reserve, Lambayeque department, Peru. Bathing in a stream. A well-named species found only in SW Ecuador and NW Peru. (S6)

Tumbes Hummingbird Leucippus baeri Chaparri reserve, Lambayeque department, Peru. (S6)

White-bellied Hummingbird Amazilia chionogaster chionogaster Abra Patricia, San Martín department, Peru. Very similar to Andean Emerald A. franciae, which occurs together with it in this area. White-bellied always shows some white in the tail, but this is often only visible in flight and not visible in this photo. Some taxonomists place it in the genus Leucippus. (S6)

Green-and-white Hummingbird Amazilia viridicauda Aguas Calientes, Cusco department, Peru. Endemic to cloudforest in southeastern Peru. It is very similar to the previous species, but lacks the white in the tail and occurs in different habitat. (S6)

Amazilia Hummingbird Amazilia amazilia leucophaea Chaparrí Reserve, Lambayeque department, Peru. A hummer found only in southern Ecuador and western Peru; it prefers drier habitats. (S6)

Amazilia Hummingbird Amazilia amazilia leucophaea Chaparrí Reserve, Lambayeque department, Peru. Coming in to bathe in a stream. (S6)

White-bellied Emerald Amazilia candida genini Sierra de los Tuxtlas, Veracruz state, Mexico. (S5)

White-chested Emerald Amazilia brevirostris chionopectus Guaraunos, Sucre state, Venezuela. Female. Not an easy ID, but the all black bill rules out most of the similar species. Normally it shows more of a copper rump. The gray tips to the outer tail feathers indicate that it's probably a female. (D3)

Versicolored Emerald Amazilia versicolor versicolor Hotel do Ypê, Itatiaia NP, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. A variable species, even within the same race. Some birds, especially near the coast (see below), show larger amounts of white on the throat. This individual shows only white fringing to the feathers on its chin and central throat. (D3)

Versicolored Emerald Amazilia versicolor versicolor Folha Seca, São Paulo state, Brazil. An example of the coastal form, which formerly was considered a separate subspecies, brevirostris. However, that name has been shown to belong to White-chested Emerald, leaving this form with no current described subspecies. (S7)

Andean Emerald Amazilia franciae viridiceps Tandayapa Bird Lodge, Pichincha Province, Ecuador. Probably a male due to the bluish tinge on the crown. (S8)

Glittering-throated Emerald Amazilia fimbriata tephrocephala Guapi Assu Bird Lodge, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. (S7)

Sapphire-spangled Emerald Amazilia lactea lactea Sumidouro, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. Male. This species has a rather disjunct range in South America. This is the nominate race, which occurs in central and southern Brazil. Other subspecies occur in the Tepui region and in E Peru/N Bolivia. (S7)

Charming Hummingbird Amazilia decora Esquinas Lodge, La Gamba, Puntarenas province, Costa Rica. Endemic to the Pacific lowlands of SW Costa Rica and W Panama. (S8)

Purple-chested Hummingbird Amazilia rosenbergi Río Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha province, Ecuador. Male. Endemic to the Chocó region of western Colombia and northwestern Ecuador. (S8)

Berylline Hummingbird Amazilia beryllina sumichrasti North of Mapastepec, Chiapas state, Mexico. (S5)

Steely-vented Hummingbird Amazilia saucerrottei warscewiczi Minca, Santa Marta mountains, Magdalena department, Colombia. This rather plain hummer is found in Central America and northern South America. The coppery rump and blue tail with a slight fork are good clues. (S6)

Snowy-bellied Hummingbird Amazilia edward edward Canopy Tower, Panama province, Panama. Probably a male. It's range is centered on Panama, reaching into SW Costa Rica, and only barely making it into Colombia. Sometimes placed in the genus Saucerottia. (S2f)

Green-bellied (Copper-tailed) Hummingbird Amazilia viridigaster cupreicauda Iwokrama Forest, Potaro-Siparuni region, Guyana. The grayish belly indicates that this is probably a juvenile. At only 50 m above sea level, this is an extremely low record for this species, which normally is found in mountains. (D3)

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird Amazilia tzacatl fuscicaudata Minca, Santa Marta mountains, Magdalena department, Colombia A common hummer of more open habitats and forest edge. It tolerates a very wide elevational range; this one was photographed near feeders at 600 m. (S6)

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird Amazilia tzacatl jucunda Milpe Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha province, Ecuador. (S8)

Green-fronted Hummingbird Amazilia viridifrons viridifrons North of Arriaga, Chiapas state, Mexico. (S5)

Golden-tailed Sapphire Chrysuronia oenone oenone Wildsumaco, Napo province, Ecuador. Male. This photo was taken at dusk without flash. It's hard to get sharp hummer shots in low light conditions without flash, but when they do come out, they often look spectacular. Late afternoon light tends to be less directional, so the bird is illuminated more evenly, bringing out colors and details in all parts of its plumage. This species is found on the lower Andean east slope and adjacent lowlands as well as northern Venezuela. It does not usually occur a great distance away from the mountains. A photo of the female is below. (S7)

Golden-tailed Sapphire Chrysuronia oenone oenone Wildsumaco, Napo province, Ecuador. Female. (S7)

Sapphire-bellied Hummingbird Lepidopyga lilliae Vía Parque Isla de Salamanca, Magdalena department, Colombia. Male. This is an extremely rare hummer of mangroves of northern Colombia, though its status as a species has been questioned. It occurs together with the similar Sapphire-throated Hummingbird L. coeruleogularis, and it seems improbable that such such close congeners could share the same niche. Sapphire-bellied may only be an age stage or a local race of Sapphire-throated. I tend to agree with that (and see the photo to the right) but pending further research it will remain a good species. (S6)		Sapphire-bellied Hummingbird Lepidopyga lilliae Vía Parque Isla de Salamanca, Magdalena department, Colombia. Male. This is the same individual is show in the photo to the left. This bird shows some green on the undertail coverts, though the species is meant to have entirely blue underparts. I still call it Sapphire-bellied as it does have almost entirely blue underparts and is far closer to Sapphire-bellied than Sapphire-throated. (S6)

Shining-green Hummingbird Lepidopyga goudoti Perico, La Guajira department, Colombia. A confusing hummer restricted to lowlands of N Colombia and W Venezuela. The central retrices are green when seen from above, a feature not visible in this photo, though I saw it in the field. In this area, it typically shows a lot more red in the bill than the similar Red-billed Emerald, despite the name. (S6)

Violet-bellied Hummingbird Damophila julie feliciana Buenaventura reserve, El Oro province, Ecuador. Male. This race is nearly endemic to the Chocó bioregion. (S8)

Violet-bellied Hummingbird Damophila julie feliciana Buenaventura reserve, El Oro province, Ecuador. Female or juvenile male. (S8)

White-chinned Sapphire Hylocharis cyanus griseiventris Folha Seca, São Paulo state, Brazil. Male. The white chin is really just some pale flecks at the base of a few feathers, barely noticeable even in a photo. (S7)

Gilded Hummingbird Hylocharis chrysura Caiman Lodge, Mato Grosso de Sul state, Brazil. A rather washed-out member of the genus. They are surprisingly common at Caiman, considering they are rare or absent from much of the northern Pantanal. (D3)

Blue-headed Sapphire Hylocharis grayi Tulquizán, Carchi province, Ecuador. Found from central Colombia to northern Ecuador. In Ecuador at least, it prefers drier woodland in inter-Andean valleys. (S8)

Blue-headed Sapphire Hylocharis grayi Tulquizán, Carchi province, Ecuador. Female. (S8)