The amazilia hummingbird (''Amazilis 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 ...
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 differ primarily in their throat and belly colors.
Taxonomy
An illustration of the amazilia hummingbird together with the
binomial name
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...
''Orthorynchus amazilia'' was published in 1827 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 ...
. In the following year he published a description.
The specific epithet is from the name of 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 amazilia hummingbird was formerly placed in the genus '']Amazilia
''Amazilia'' is a hummingbird genus in the subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in tropical Central and South America.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Amazilia'' was introduced in 1843 by the French naturalist René Lesson. Lesson had used ''amazilia'' i ...
''. 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 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, the amazilia hummingbird was moved by most taxonomic authorities to the resurrected genus ''Amazilis'' that had been introduced in 1855 by George Gray.[Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 24 July 2022. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved July 24, 2022][Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ Retrieved August 25, 2021] However, BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...
's ''Handbook of the Birds of the World
The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. T ...
'' retains it in ''Amazilia''.[
There are six generally recognized subspecies:][
*''A. a. alticola'' (]Gould
Gould may refer to:
People
* Gould (name), a surname
Places United States
* Gould, Arkansas, a city
* Gould, Colorado, an unincorporated community
* Gould, Ohio, an unincorporated community
* Gould, Oklahoma, a town
* Gould, West Virginia, a ...
, 1860) – south Ecuador
*''A. a. azuay'' ( Krabbe & Ridgely, 2010) – southwest Ecuador
*''A. a. dumerilii'' ( Lesson, RP, 1832) – west Ecuador and northwest Peru
*''A. a. leucophoea'' ( Reichenbach, 1854) – northwest Peru
*''A. a. amazilia'' (Lesson
A lesson or class is a structured period of time where learning is intended to occur. It involves one or more students (also called pupils or learners in some circumstances) being taught by a teacher or instructor. A lesson may be either one ...
& Garnot, 1827) – west Peru
*''A. a. caeruleigularis'' ( Carriker, 1933) – southwest Peru
Some ornithologists have proposed that subspecies ''A. a. alticola'' should be treated as a separate species, the "Loja hummingbird".
Description
The amazilia hummingbird is long. Males weigh and females . Both sexes of all subspecies have a straight, medium length, pinkish-red bill with a black tip. Adult males of the nominate subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
''A. a. amazilia'' have golden-green upperparts with rufous uppertail coverts
A covert feather or tectrix on a bird is one of a set of feathers, called coverts (or ''tectrices''), which, as the name implies, cover other feathers. The coverts help to smooth airflow over the wings and tail. Ear coverts
The ear coverts are sm ...
. Their tail is also mostly rufous, with some bronze-green on the outer feathers. They have a glittering golden- to turquoise-green throat and a rufous lower breast and belly. Adult females have almost the same plumage, with the addition of some white on the chin and throat and a paler rufous belly. Juveniles resemble adult females with the addition of browish edges on their upperparts' feathers.
The amazilia hummingbird's song is "a variable but typically descending series of 4–10 squeaky notes, repeated at intervals." There are differences within and among the subspecies, especially that of ''A. a. alticola'' compared to the others. The species makes calls described as "tsip" and "dry 'zrrt'"; sometimes they are extended as "stuttering rattles".[
Subspecies ''A. a. alticola'' has less rufous on the breast than the nominate and almost no green on the tail. ''A. a. azuay'' differs the most from the nominate. Its bill has less red on the ]maxilla
The maxilla (plural: ''maxillae'' ) in vertebrates is the upper fixed (not fixed in Neopterygii) bone of the jaw formed from the fusion of two maxillary bones. In humans, the upper jaw includes the hard palate in the front of the mouth. The t ...
, it has a nearly pure white belly with rufous only on the lower flanks, and its uppertail coverts and tail are paler rufous with little green. ''A. a. dumerilii'' is somewhat smaller than the nominate, with a white chin, throat, and center of the belly. ''A. a. leucophoea'' looks almost the same as ''demerillii'' but has bronze-green upperparts. ''A. a. caeruleigularis'' has a glittering violet-blue throat instead of the nominate's green.[
]
Distribution and habitat
The amazilia hummingbird is found in western Ecuador and Peru. It does not migrate but does make some elevational dispersal after the breeding season.[ The six subspecies are distributed thus:][
*''A. a. alticola'', Andes of southern Ecuador's El Oro, Loja, and Zamora-Chinchipe provinces
*''A. a. azuay'', south-central Ecuador, in the ]Jubones River
The Jubones River is a river of Ecuador.
See also
*List of rivers of Ecuador
The rivers of Ecuador are an important part of the nation's geography and economy. Most of the over 2,000 rivers and streamsTerry have headwaters in the Andes mountain ...
basin of Azuay
Azuay (), Province of Azuay is a province of Ecuador, created on 25 June 1824. It encompasses an area of . Its capital is Cuenca. It is located in the south center of Ecuador in the highlands. Its mountains reach above sea level in the nationa ...
and Loja provinces
*''A. a. dumerilii'', Andean lowlands from western Ecuador into Tumbes Department
Tumbes () is a coastal department and region in northwestern Peru bordering Ecuador. Due to the region's location near the Equator it has a warm climate, with beaches that are considered among the finest in Peru. Despite its small area, the reg ...
of northwestern Peru
*''A. a. leucophoea'', northwestern Peru between Piura
Piura is a city in northwestern Peru located in the Sechura Desert on the Piura River. It is the capital of the Piura Region and the Piura Province. Its population was 484,475 as of 2017.
It was here that Spanish Conqueror Francisco Pizarro fou ...
and Ancash
Ancash ( qu, Anqash; es, Áncash ) is a department and region in northern Peru. It is bordered by the departments of La Libertad on the north, Huánuco and Pasco on the east, Lima on the south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. Its capital i ...
departments
*''A. a. amazilia'', western Peru in Lima
Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...
and Ica departments
*''A. a. caeruleigularis'', the Nazca valley in southwestern Peru
The amazilia hummingbird's habitat is different from that of its close relatives in the genus ''Amazilia'': It is a bird of open semi-arid to arid landscapes and is rarely found deep in forested areas. These landscapes include scrublands, thorn forest
A thorn forest is a dense scrubland with vegetation characteristic of dry subtropical and warm temperate areas with a seasonal rainfall averaging .
Regions Africa
Is present in the southwest of Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest ...
, xerophytic
A xerophyte (from Greek ξηρός ''xeros'' 'dry' + φυτόν ''phuton'' 'plant') is a species of plant that has adaptations to survive in an environment with little liquid water, such as a desert such as the Sahara or places in the Alps or th ...
steppe, and desert. The species is also common in cultivated areas and city parks and gardens. The nominate subspecies is found between sea level and about . Subspecies ''dumerilii'', ''leucophaea'', and ''alticola'' are also found in the sub-montane zone in savanna and at the edges and clearings of cloudforest
A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud c ...
. In elevation they mostly range between , though ''leucophaea'' reaches as high as . ''A. a. caeruleigularis'' is apparently restricted to near-desert between .[
]
Behavior
Feeding
The amazilia hummingbird forages for nectar at a variety of plants with medium-length flowers; some examples include ''Erythrina
''Erythrina'' is a genus of plants in the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains about 130 species, which are distributed in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. They are trees, with the larger species growing up to in height. The generic na ...
'', ''Psittacanthus
''Psittacanthus'', also parrot-flower, is a plant genus in the family Loranthaceae. It is a type of mistletoe native from central Mexico southwards to Central America and parts of South America.Vázquez Collazo, I. & Geils, B.W. 2002.
It diff ...
'', ''Salvia
''Salvia'' () is the largest genus of plants in the sage family Lamiaceae, with nearly 1000 species of shrubs, herbaceous plant, herbaceous perennial plant, perennials, and annual plant, annuals. Within the Lamiaceae, ''Salvia'' is part of the ...
'', and '' Justicia''. Males are territorial, defending feeding feeding patches from other hummingbirds and bananaquit
The bananaquit (''Coereba flaveola'') is a species of passerine bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. Before the development of molecular genetics in the 21st century, its relationship to other species was uncertain and it was either placed with ...
s (''Coereba flaveola''). In addition to nectar it feeds on small insects and spiders. A time-budget study in Lima, Peru, showed that the species spent 80% of its time perched and about 15% foraging for nectar. It spent about 2% of its time defending feeding territories and only 0.3% hunting insects and drinking water.
Breeding
Most subspecies of the amazilia hummingbird breed at any month of the year; ''A. a. alticola'' apparently breeds only from November to March. Females build a cup nest of soft plant fibers bound with cobweb and sometimes with lichen on the outside. It generally places it on top of a flat branch and sometimes at the end of a branch, between about above the ground. In Ecuador nests were found in denser vegetation during the rainy season than in the dry one. The female incubates the clutch of two eggs for 16 to 18 days and fledging occurs 17 to 25 days after hatch.[
]
Status
The IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
has assessed the amazilia hummingbird as being of Least Concern. It has a large range but its population size and trend are not known. No immediate threats have been identified.[ Overall it is considered uncommon to common. ''A. a. alticola'' has a restricted range and is locally common where the habitat is suitable, but deforestation is a potential threat. ''A. a. caeruleigularis'' has a very patchy distribution in its rather restricted range.][
]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q943588
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 ...
Birds of Ecuador
Birds of Peru
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 ...
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 ...
Taxa named by René Lesson
Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN