Long-billed Hermit
Encyclopedia
The Long-billed Hermit is a large hummingbird
that is a resident breeder from central Mexico
south to northwestern Colombia
, extreme western Venezuela
and western Ecuador
. This species is currently (2006) known as the Western Long-tailed Hermit, but it is likely, following recommendations from Gary Stiles in February 2006, that the new name will be officially adopted by most authorities.
The taxonomy of this group is complicated, with similar hermit
populations from both sides of the Andes
being originally named as one species, the Long-tailed Hermit
, P. superciliosus. The latter name in now reserved for the species east of the cordillera.
A further problem is the potential separation of the paler, greyer, and slightly smaller southern subspecies P. l. baroni as Baron’s Hermit, P. baroni, although the opposition of Stiles makes that split unlikely to be formally accepted unless confirmed by further research.
The Long-billed Hermit inhabits forest undergrowth, usually near water and its preferred food plants. It is 15 cm long and weighs 6 g. The bill is very long and decurved (3.4-3.7 cm), with a red upper and black lower mandible, and the central feathers of the tapered tail are long (6.3-6.8 cm) and white-tipped.
The adult Long-billed Hermit is mainly dark green above with a blue-green rump. It has a dark mask through the eye, with buff stripes above and below this, and a brown face. The underparts are grey to buff in colour. The sexes are similar, although the female is slightly smaller, but young birds have buff fringes to the feathers of the upperparts and head.
During the breeding season, male Long-billed Hermits sing in communal leks of up to 25 birds, and also wiggle their long tails in display. Competitive lek singing can occupy half of the daylight hours, the purpose of course being to attract females. The female selects the best lek singer to mate with. The song consists of high pitched squeaky of chink churr and shree sounds. The flight call is a high sweep.
The female Long-billed Hermit is solely responsible for nest construction, incubation and feeding the young. She lays two white eggs in a conical nest of fibres and cobwebs suspended under a large Heliconia
or banana
leaf 1.2 to 1.5 m above the ground. The incubation period is 14–19 days, with another 18 to 28 days to fledging.
The food of this species is nectar, taken from large flowers, such as Heliconias and passion flower
s, and small insect
s and spider
s taken as an essential source of protein. Hatchlings are fed by the female with regurgitated invertebrate
s.
Long-billed Hermits are trap-line feeders; they do not defend territory, but visit seasonal flowers on routes through the forest up to 1 km long. They pollinate some flowers such as Aphelandra which have long flowers adapted to the hummingbirds long curved bill.
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...
that is a resident breeder from central Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
south to northwestern Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, extreme western Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
and western 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...
. This species is currently (2006) known as the Western Long-tailed Hermit, but it is likely, following recommendations from Gary Stiles in February 2006, that the new name will be officially adopted by most authorities.
The taxonomy of this group is complicated, with similar hermit
Hermit (hummingbird)
The hermits are tropical and subtropical hummingbirds in the subfamily Phaethornithinae, comprising 30–40 species in six genera. They occur from southern Mexico, through Central America, to South America as far south as northern Argentina....
populations from both sides of the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
being originally named as one species, the Long-tailed Hermit
Long-tailed Hermit
The Long-tailed Hermit is a large hummingbird that is a resident breeder in Venezuela, the Guianas, and north-eastern Brazil...
, P. superciliosus. The latter name in now reserved for the species east of the cordillera.
The Long-billed Hermit inhabits forest undergrowth, usually near water and its preferred food plants. It is 15 cm long and weighs 6 g. The bill is very long and decurved (3.4-3.7 cm), with a red upper and black lower mandible, and the central feathers of the tapered tail are long (6.3-6.8 cm) and white-tipped.
The adult Long-billed Hermit is mainly dark green above with a blue-green rump. It has a dark mask through the eye, with buff stripes above and below this, and a brown face. The underparts are grey to buff in colour. The sexes are similar, although the female is slightly smaller, but young birds have buff fringes to the feathers of the upperparts and head.
The female Long-billed Hermit is solely responsible for nest construction, incubation and feeding the young. She lays two white eggs in a conical nest of fibres and cobwebs suspended under a large Heliconia
Heliconia
Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions...
or banana
Banana
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
leaf 1.2 to 1.5 m above the ground. The incubation period is 14–19 days, with another 18 to 28 days to fledging.
The food of this species is nectar, taken from large flowers, such as Heliconias and passion flower
Passion flower
Passiflora, known also as the passion flowers or passion vines, is a genus of about 500 species of flowering plants, the namesakes of the family Passifloraceae. They are mostly vines, with some being shrubs, and a few species being herbaceous. For information about the fruit of the passiflora...
s, and small 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 and spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s taken as an essential source of protein. Hatchlings are fed by the female with regurgitated invertebrate
Invertebrate
An invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. The group includes 97% of all animal species – all animals except those in the chordate subphylum Vertebrata .Invertebrates form a paraphyletic group...
s.
Long-billed Hermits are trap-line feeders; they do not defend territory, but visit seasonal flowers on routes through the forest up to 1 km long. They pollinate some flowers such as Aphelandra which have long flowers adapted to the hummingbirds long curved bill.
External links
- Long-billed Hermit videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection
- Long-billed Hermit photo-High Res; Article AOCR
