''Amazilia'' is a

hummingbird Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics aro ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Trochilinae Trochilinae is one of the six subfamilies that make up the hummingbird family Trochilidae. The subfamily is divided into three tribes: Lampornithini (mountain gems) containing 18 species, Mellisugini (bees) containing 37 species and Trochili ...

. It is found in

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

Taxonomy

The genus ''Amazilia'' was introduced in 1843 by the French naturalist

René Lesson René-Primevère Lesson (20 March 1794 – 28 April 1849) was a French surgeon, naturalist, ornithologist, and herpetologist. Biography Lesson was born at Rochefort, and entered the Naval Medical School in Rochefort at the age of sixteen. He ...

. Lesson had used ''amazilia'' in 1827 as the specific epithet of the

amazilia hummingbird The amazilia hummingbird (''Amazilis amazilia'') is a hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Amazilis''. It is found in Ecuador and Peru. Its six subspecies diffe ...

which is now the only species placed in the genus ''Amazilis''. The name comes from the Inca heroine in

Jean-François Marmontel Jean-François Marmontel (11 July 1723 – 31 December 1799) was a French historian, writer and a member of the Encyclopédistes movement. Biography He was born of poor parents at Bort, Limousin (today in Corrèze). After studying with th ...

's novel ''Les Incas, ou la destruction de l'Empire du Pérou''. The

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

was subsequently designated as the

cinnamon hummingbird The cinnamon hummingbird (''Amazilia rutila'') is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found from northwestern Mexico to Costa Rica. Taxonomy The cinnamon hummingbird was formally descr ...

. The genus contains five species: *

Rufous-tailed hummingbird The rufous-tailed hummingbird (''Amazilia tzacatl'') is a medium-sized hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found from east-central Mexico through Central America and Colombia into Ecuador and Venez ...

, ''Amazilia tzacatl *

Buff-bellied hummingbird The buff-bellied hummingbird (''Amazilia yucatanensis'') is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in Belize, Guatemala, Mexico, and the United States.HBW and BirdLife Internation ...

, ''Amazilia yucatanensis'' *

Cinnamon hummingbird The cinnamon hummingbird (''Amazilia rutila'') is a species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found from northwestern Mexico to Costa Rica. Taxonomy The cinnamon hummingbird was formally descr ...

, ''Amazilia rutila'' *

Mangrove hummingbird The mangrove hummingbird (''Amazilia boucardi'') is an Endangered species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is endemic to Costa Rica. Taxonomy The mangrove hummingbird was formally described in 18 ...

, ''Amazilia boucardi'' *

Honduran emerald The Honduran emerald (''Amazilia luciae'') is a Vulnerable species of hummingbird in the "emeralds" tribe, Trochilini, of the subfamily Trochilinae. It is endemic to Honduras. Taxonomy The Honduran emerald was formally described in 1868 by t ...

, ''Amazilia luciae'' An additional species is sometimes included: *

Guanacaste hummingbird The guanacaste hummingbird or Alfero's hummingbird (''Amazilia alfaroana'') is a possibly extinct species of hummingbird known only from a holotype collected in 1895 at the Miravalles Volcano in Costa Rica. Taxonomy It is usually treated as a s ...

, ''Amazilia alfaroana'' (disputed) This genus formerly included many more species. A

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

study published in 2014 found that the large genus was

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage of organisms or other evolving elements that is of mixed evolutionary origin. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as homoplasies, which are explained as a result of converg ...

. In the revised classification to create

monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gro ...

genera, species were moved to '' Leucolia'', ''

Saucerottia ''Saucerottia'' is a genus of birds in the family Trochilidae, or hummingbirds. Species The species now placed in this genus were formerly placed in ''Amazilia''. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2014 found that the genus ''Amazilia' ...

'', ''

Amazilis The amazilia hummingbird (''Amazilis amazilia'') is a hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Amazilis''. It is found in Ecuador and Peru. Its six subspecies diffe ...

'', '' Uranomitra'', ''

Chrysuronia ''Chrysuronia'' is a genus of hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae. Taxonomy The genus ''Chrysuronia'' was introduced in 1850 by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte. Bonaparte did not specify a type species but this was designated a ...

'', '' Polyerata'', ''

Chionomesa ''Chionomesa'' is a genus of South American hummingbirds in the family Trochilidae. Species The genus contains two species: *Glittering-throated emerald, ''Chionomesa fimbriata'' *Sapphire-spangled emerald, ''Chionomesa lactea'' These two speci ...

'', '' Elliotomyia '' and ''

Chlorestes ''Chlorestes'' is a genus of hummingbirds. Species The genus contains five species: * White-bellied emerald, ''Chlorestes candida'' (formerly placed in ''Amazilia'') * Blue-throated sapphire, ''Chlorestes eliciae'' (formerly placed in ''Hyloch ...

''.

References

Bird genera Taxa named by René Lesson Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{hummingbird-stub