Black-throated Mango
Encyclopedia
The Black-throated Mango (Anthracothorax nigricollis) is a mainly South America
n hummingbird
species
.
The male has glossy bright green upperparts. His throat and chest are matt black, bordered with blue-green. The flanks are bright green, and the black of the chest tapers onto the belly.
The female Black-throated Mango has bronze-green upperparts and white underparts with a black central stripe. Immature birds show some grey or buff feather tips on the head and wings, and have brown around the eyes.
The call of the Black-throated Mango is a high-pitched tsiuck, and the song is a buzzing hsl-hsl-hsl-hsl-hsl-hsl-hsl.
This species is very similar to the closely related Green-breasted Mango
. Although the male Black-throated Mango has more extensive black on the underparts, this and other plumage differences are not always easy to confirm in the field because the birds appear all-black. The females of the two species can be almost inseparable, although the Black-throated lacks the more extensively coppery upperpart of its relative.
south to northeasterm Bolivia
, southern Brazil
and northern Argentina
. It is also common on both Trinidad
and Tobago
. It is a local or seasonal migrant
, with some birds moving up to 1000 miles, although its movements are not well understood.
This small bird
inhabits open country, gardens and cultivation. Though it will adapt to human activity, it seems less of a generalist
than for example the Gilded Sapphire (Hylocharis chrysura) or the Sapphire-spangled Emerald
(Amazilia lactea).
The food of this species is nectar, often taken from the flowers of large trees. This hummingbird is also notably insectivorous, often hovering in open areas to catch flying insect
s. It appears to be somewhat picky regarding favorite foodplants and often does not visit ornamental plant
s popular with many other hummingbirds, such as Erythrina speciosa
or Stifftia chrysantha; certain ornamental Bignoniaceae
like Fountain Tree (Spathodea campanulata) seem more to this bird's liking. While feeding, it has been observed to dominate over a Glittering-bellied Emerald
(Chlorostilbon lucidus) and to be displaced by a Gilded Hummingbird, both considerably smaller species.
The Black-throated Mango's breeding season lasts almost year-round in most of its range. It builds a tiny cup nest on a high, thin, and usually bare branch. For this it uses fluff like seed down, cladding the outside with lichen
. Nests are maybe 35–40 mm wide and 25–30 mm tall on the outside and some 25 mm wide and 10–15 mm deep inside. The two all-white eggs measure c.15 by 9.5 mm. They are incubated by the female for 16 or 17 days, and fledging takes another 24.
At a Black-throated Mango nest in Cuyabeno Faunistic Reserve
, Ecuador
, it was noted that the tree was beset with Pseudomyrmex
stinging ant
s. This was also noted at a Green-breasted Mango nest on San Andrés Island (Caribbean
). It is likely that the ants would deter predators, but it is not known whether the birds deliberately select such trees for nesting.
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n hummingbird
Hummingbird
Hummingbirds are birds that comprise the family Trochilidae. They are among the smallest of birds, most species measuring in the 7.5–13 cm range. Indeed, the smallest extant bird species is a hummingbird, the 5-cm Bee Hummingbird. They can hover in mid-air by rapidly flapping their wings...
species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
.
Description
It is 10.2 cm long and weighs 7.2g. The longish black bill is slightly decurved. The tail in both sexes has dark central feathers, the outer tail being wine-red tipped with black.The male has glossy bright green upperparts. His throat and chest are matt black, bordered with blue-green. The flanks are bright green, and the black of the chest tapers onto the belly.
The female Black-throated Mango has bronze-green upperparts and white underparts with a black central stripe. Immature birds show some grey or buff feather tips on the head and wings, and have brown around the eyes.
The call of the Black-throated Mango is a high-pitched tsiuck, and the song is a buzzing hsl-hsl-hsl-hsl-hsl-hsl-hsl.
This species is very similar to the closely related Green-breasted Mango
Green-breasted Mango
The Green-breasted Mango is a hummingbird from tropical America. The scientific name of this bird commemorates the French naturalist Florent Prévost.- Description :...
. Although the male Black-throated Mango has more extensive black on the underparts, this and other plumage differences are not always easy to confirm in the field because the birds appear all-black. The females of the two species can be almost inseparable, although the Black-throated lacks the more extensively coppery upperpart of its relative.
Distribution and ecology
It breeds from PanamaPanama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
south to northeasterm Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
, southern Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
and northern Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. It is also common on both Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
and Tobago
Tobago
Tobago is the smaller of the two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in the southern Caribbean, northeast of the island of Trinidad and southeast of Grenada. The island lies outside the hurricane belt...
. It is a local or seasonal migrant
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
, with some birds moving up to 1000 miles, although its movements are not well understood.
This small bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
inhabits open country, gardens and cultivation. Though it will adapt to human activity, it seems less of a generalist
Generalist
Generalist may refer to:* a person with a wide array of knowledge, the opposite of which is a specialist.* a physician who is focused on primary care and is not a specialist in a certain medical field...
than for example the Gilded Sapphire (Hylocharis chrysura) or the Sapphire-spangled Emerald
Sapphire-spangled Emerald
The Sapphire-spangled Emerald, Amazilia lactea, is a species of hummingbird that occurs in Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia and Brazil from the Amazon south to Santa Catarina; there are uncertain records from east Ecuador. Both male and female have a bright "sapphire" blue chest and chin and green-blue...
(Amazilia lactea).
The food of this species is nectar, often taken from the flowers of large trees. This hummingbird is also notably insectivorous, often hovering in open areas to catch flying insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s. It appears to be somewhat picky regarding favorite foodplants and often does not visit ornamental plant
Ornamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
s popular with many other hummingbirds, such as Erythrina speciosa
Erythrina speciosa
Erythrina speciosa is a tree native to Brazil, which is often cultivated and has introduced populations in Africa and India. It is pollinated by hummingbirds.- External links :*...
or Stifftia chrysantha; certain ornamental Bignoniaceae
Bignoniaceae
The Bignoniaceae, or Trumpet Creeper Family, is a family of flowering plants comprising about 650-750 species in 116-120 genera. Members of the family are mostly trees and lianas , shrubs and more rarely herbaceous plants. As climber plants, they are twine climbers or tendril climbers, and rarely...
like Fountain Tree (Spathodea campanulata) seem more to this bird's liking. While feeding, it has been observed to dominate over a Glittering-bellied Emerald
Glittering-bellied Emerald
The Glittering-bellied Emerald is a species of hummingbird in the Trochilidae family. It has widely been listed by the scientific name Chlorostilbon aureoventris, but this was shown to be mistaken by J. F. Pacheco and B. M. Whitney in 2006.It is found in north-eastern Argentina, eastern and...
(Chlorostilbon lucidus) and to be displaced by a Gilded Hummingbird, both considerably smaller species.
The Black-throated Mango's breeding season lasts almost year-round in most of its range. It builds a tiny cup nest on a high, thin, and usually bare branch. For this it uses fluff like seed down, cladding the outside with lichen
Lichen
Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...
. Nests are maybe 35–40 mm wide and 25–30 mm tall on the outside and some 25 mm wide and 10–15 mm deep inside. The two all-white eggs measure c.15 by 9.5 mm. They are incubated by the female for 16 or 17 days, and fledging takes another 24.
At a Black-throated Mango nest in Cuyabeno Faunistic Reserve
Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve
The Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve is a humid tropical rainforest protected zone in Ecuador. It is situated in the Putumayo Canton in the Sucumbíos Province and in the Aguarico Canton in the Orellana Province. It was founded on 26 July 1979. At an altitude of 200– 280 meters, one of the principle...
, Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, it was noted that the tree was beset with Pseudomyrmex
Pseudomyrmex
Pseudomyrmex is a genus of stinging, wasp-like ants in the family Formicidae . They are large eyed, slender ants with an arboreal habitat. They are found exclusively in the New World in tropical and subtropical regions...
stinging ant
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
s. This was also noted at a Green-breasted Mango nest on San Andrés Island (Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
). It is likely that the ants would deter predators, but it is not known whether the birds deliberately select such trees for nesting.
External links
- Black-throated Mango videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Stamps (for Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
) with RangeMap - Black-throated Mango photo gallery VIREO Photo-High Res
- Photo-High Res; Article tsgcs.co.uk
- Photo-High Res--Bird sitting on Nest; Article www1.nhl.nl—"Suriname Birds"--Map and 4 High Res photos
