Violet-headed Hummingbird
Encyclopedia
The Violet-headed Hummingbird (Klais guimeti) is a species of hummingbird
in the Trochilidae family. It is monotypic of the genus, Klais.
It is found in Bolivia
, Brazil
, Colombia
, Costa Rica
, Ecuador
, Honduras
, Nicaragua
, Panama
, Peru
, and Venezuela
. Its natural habitat
s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest
s, subtropical or tropical moist montane
s, and heavily degraded former forest
.
that is on the average 13 mm in length. The head and throat of the male are intense violet or blue (depending on the angle viewed) with white spots behind each eye that stands out against the dark head. The back is metallic bluish-green (or bronze-green depending on the angle) and breast is green fading to a grey belly. The tail is green with tiny white-grey tail spots and the wings black.
The female is duller with a blue cap, green back and grey throat, breast and belly. The wings and tail are the same as the male. The female also has the white spot behind the eye.
in 1843. The species name is after M. Guimet who was a chemist from Lyon
s, France
. It is in the hummingbird family (Trochilidae).
well into South America
. This includes Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama in Central America and western Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, northern Brazil, western Venezuela and northern Bolivia. The species tends to be local in distribution, common in some areas and rare in other seemingly identical areas.
The Violet-Headed Hummingbird occurs in the mountains and has been recorded to occur from 200 to 850 meters in Costa Rica, from 400 to 1850 meters in Colombia and 150 to 1900 meters in Venezuela.
s, in shrub and thicket clearings and in various human modified habitat such as Stachytarpheta
hedges in Costa Rica and shade-grown coffee plantations in Venezuela.
The nest is a mossy cup built 1 to 5 meters above forested mountain streams. They are normally built in February, but sometimes as early as January. The last young fledge
in May.
s on the wing. In Costa Rica, a particular fondness for Stachytarpheta
flowers has been reported with as many as one individual every 5-7 meters on a hedge near Murcia.
due to its large range and ability to exist in human modified habitat. The flowering shrubs near Murcia, Costa Rica, were reported to be in an area cleared for agriculture
with very few trees.
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...
in the Trochilidae family. It is monotypic of the genus, Klais.
It is found in 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...
, 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...
, 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...
, Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
, 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...
, Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Panama
Panama
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...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, and 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...
. Its natural habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
s, subtropical or tropical moist montane
Montane
In biogeography, montane is the highland area located below the subalpine zone. Montane regions generally have cooler temperatures and often have higher rainfall than the adjacent lowland regions, and are frequently home to distinct communities of plants and animals.The term "montane" means "of the...
s, and heavily degraded former forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
.
Description
Violet-headed Hummingbirds are on average 8.1 cm in length with a short, straight billBeak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
that is on the average 13 mm in length. The head and throat of the male are intense violet or blue (depending on the angle viewed) with white spots behind each eye that stands out against the dark head. The back is metallic bluish-green (or bronze-green depending on the angle) and breast is green fading to a grey belly. The tail is green with tiny white-grey tail spots and the wings black.
The female is duller with a blue cap, green back and grey throat, breast and belly. The wings and tail are the same as the male. The female also has the white spot behind the eye.
Taxonomy
The Violet-headed Hummingbird was described by Jules BourcierJules Bourcier
Jules Bourcier was a French naturalist.Bourcier was an expert on hummingbirds, and named a number of new species, either alone or with other ornithologists such as Adolphe Delattre and Martial Etienne Mulsant....
in 1843. The species name is after M. Guimet who was a chemist from Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
s, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It is in the hummingbird family (Trochilidae).
Range
The Violet-headed Hummingbird (Klais guimeti) ranges from Central AmericaCentral America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
well into South America
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...
. This includes Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama in Central America and western Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, northern Brazil, western Venezuela and northern Bolivia. The species tends to be local in distribution, common in some areas and rare in other seemingly identical areas.
The Violet-Headed Hummingbird occurs in the mountains and has been recorded to occur from 200 to 850 meters in Costa Rica, from 400 to 1850 meters in Colombia and 150 to 1900 meters in Venezuela.
Habitat
Violet-headed Hummingbird are found on the edges of humid primary forest, openings in secondary forestSecondary forest
A secondary forest is a forest or woodland area which has re-grown after a major disturbance such as fire, insect infestation, timber harvest or windthrow, until a long enough period has passed so that the effects of the disturbance are no longer evident...
s, in shrub and thicket clearings and in various human modified habitat such as Stachytarpheta
Stachytarpheta
Stachytarpheta is a plant genus in the verbena family . The flowers are rich in nectar and popular with many butterflies, such as the South Asian Crimson Rose , Malabar Banded Swallowtail , and Grass Yellow .-Selected species:* Stachytarpheta cayennensis* Stachytarpheta indica*...
hedges in Costa Rica and shade-grown coffee plantations in Venezuela.
Breeding
In Costa Rica males sing in loose leks beginning in October and intensifying until the breeding season in December. The chorus continues until the dry season causes the flowers to disappear in the February to March time frame. The chorus picks up again when the rains begin again in April, but the heavy rains of May shut the chorus down again until October. The leeks are located 5 to 18 meters above the ground on the edge of clearings where the males sing conspicuously from slender dead twigs. Occasionally, an individual will sing solo without other Violet-Headed Hummingbirds nearby.The nest is a mossy cup built 1 to 5 meters above forested mountain streams. They are normally built in February, but sometimes as early as January. The last young fledge
Fledge
Fledge is the stage in a young bird's life when the feathers and wing muscles are sufficiently developed for flight. It also describes the act of a chick's parents raising it to a fully grown state...
in May.
Diet
The Violet-headed Hummingbird drinks nectar from understory flowering shrubs as well as taking small insectInsect
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 on the wing. In Costa Rica, a particular fondness for Stachytarpheta
Stachytarpheta
Stachytarpheta is a plant genus in the verbena family . The flowers are rich in nectar and popular with many butterflies, such as the South Asian Crimson Rose , Malabar Banded Swallowtail , and Grass Yellow .-Selected species:* Stachytarpheta cayennensis* Stachytarpheta indica*...
flowers has been reported with as many as one individual every 5-7 meters on a hedge near Murcia.
Relationship with humans
The Violet-headed Hummingbird has been designated as a species of Least ConcernLeast Concern
Least Concern is an IUCN category assigned to extant taxon or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, Near Threatened, or Conservation Dependent...
due to its large range and ability to exist in human modified habitat. The flowering shrubs near Murcia, Costa Rica, were reported to be in an area cleared for agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
with very few trees.
External links
- Recordings. Xeno-canto.
- Videos. Internet Bird Collection.